Hoisting the True Colors
by Anatonia Barcelona
Summary: The quest save Captain Jack has begun. But the tension begins to bring out their true motives and feelings, including those of Jeanne, who no longer knows who is friend or foe. Can they pull themselves together before the age of piracy comes to an end? Rated again for language, innuendo and some thematic elements
1. Making Her Mark

**Ana/Ayu/Hanah: Heya!**

**Ayu: I personally apologize for**_**Ana's**_******laziness. She hasn't even touched the site in over a year.**

**Hanah: And on top of that, she wasn't even writing half the time. (smacks Ana with a pillow) Dammit, Ana! Why are you so lazy?**

**Ana: ... (bursts into tears) WAAAAAAH! (bows repeatedly) Gomenasai! Gomenasai!**

**Ayu: She took Japanese while she was away.**

**Ana/Ayu/Hanah: Let's get it started!**

**Hanah: (whispers) By the way, Ana still doesn't own PotC. And if you don't know anything about Jeanne, it would be best to read the first story.**

Chapter 1: Making Her Mark

The marketplace of Madras, India was overpopulated as usual. Traders and merchants with wares of all sorts had their tents lining the streets, eager customers flocking to them like moths to a flame. A few British soldiers stood guard every couple of blocks to keep order in this place, seeing as it was part of their territory. Little did they know chaos was right around the corner. This place was a shopper's paradise, but it was also a thief's paradise.

Down the crowded streets a slender woman of leisurely strolled through the city. She was clad in a turquoise tank top with a matching sarong reaching her ankles, blue-green shoes on her feet. A pair of large hazel eyes cautiously darted from side to side beneath a silk scarf wrapped around her shoulders and over her head and nose to keep the sand the wind kicked up out. She looked just like any other patron from the neighboring Arabian lands. She was different, though. She was not here to browse; she was here with one specific target in mind.

She stopped walking when she saw a poster nailed beside one of the tents, an eyebrow rising. A girl with long, dark hair and large eyes was sketched onto it, a sinister smirk playing across her face. She ripped it from the wall and read it over, her eyes going wide.

_WANTED. Jeanette Monroe. Charge: Piracy, Interfering in East India Company Affairs, Hijacking, Sabotage, Mild Arson, Vandalism, Assisting Fugitives from Justice. DEAD OR ALIVE. 5000 guineas if dead. Negotiable reward if alive. Signed, Lord Cutler Beckett_

Her eyes slowly shifted as she folded the poster and casually tucked it underneath her scarf, then resumed her previous business.

She walked down the path, examining every item beneath the merchant tents. Every now and then, she'd ask a question about the location of certain wares. Other than that, she said nothing, simply walking and searching.

The sun was directly overhead, now, the heat bringing a sweat to her forehead. She looked up, using her hand to keep the bright rays out of her eyes. _The day's already half-spent…_ she thought to herself. _How does he know it's even here?_

As she looked down again, another piece of parchment caught her eye.

The centerpiece among an assortment of bangles and jewels was a faded yellow diagram with Chinese lettering at the top of it. She walked over to the tent where it lay, looking at it intently. She could not read the symbols, but judging from the pictures on the paper, it was exactly what she was looking for.

The young merchant running the stand came out from beneath the shade of the overhang upon seeing her. The maiden looked up at him through the silk of the scarf. A flirty smile danced across his face. "My, aren't we mysterious… Did the lovely lady find something she likes?" he asked, his voice thick with an Arabian accent.

"Yes." She tapped her finger on the diagram, "How much for this?"

His smile dimmed for a moment and he hesitated for a moment, simply staring at her. "Wouldn't you like a nice jade bracelet from China?" he offered, trying to draw her attention from the diagram.

"How much for the map?" she asked again.

He picked up a gold necklace adorned with aquamarines. "How about this fabulous necklace, imported all the way from Jamaica, to complement those lovely eyes of yours?"

Her patience was wearing thin as her eyebrow ticked. "How much for the map?" She asked with a little smile, struggling to keep her voice chipper.

His eyes shifted nervously to a ruby ring. "Or how about this—"

Suddenly, the woman's desire to control her temper evaporated. Before he even blinked, she had seized him by the throat and pulled him forward to look into those eyes he had just fancied, now hardened and dangerous. "How much… for the bloody map…?" she snarled.

Just then, strong breeze whipped over the marketplace, blowing the scarf back to let out waves of dark brown hair and reveal a rather surprised face. The black skull and crossbones tattoo with piercing red eyes on her left shoulder is what attracted the merchant's attention, though. "You're a pirate…"

Jeanne sighed as she released his throat and smiled at him. "How very observant of you." She leaned over the table and kissed the merchant on the nose, grabbing the map as she did so and dashing away with a wink, "Ta."

"Pirate!" He called to the many soldiers around him, pointing to her shrinking figure, "Pirate in the market!"

The British soldiers lining the corners suddenly rushed out, their bayonets at the ready. Jeanne smirked when she looked over her shoulder. "Well, well, well…" She stuffed the diagram underneath her scarf. "Looks like the fun has begun."

The other people in the marketplace scrambled about as they tried to avoid the soldiers racing after the impish piratesse. She ran to and fro, artfully weaving between tents and dodging people and animals as she did so. Her opportunistic side kicked in when she saw a spice tent and a path of hot coals coming up ahead of her. Grinning, she grabbed two heaping handfuls of coriander and cumin as she passed it and then flipped over the path of coals, throwing the spices down behind her.

The soldiers had to stop for a moment when a wall of smoky, aromatic flames suddenly arose in front of them with a loud crackling pop. The wall came down just as quickly as it went up, but the pirate woman was nowhere to be found. They looked around for her and just as they were about to give up pursuit, the commanding officer spotted her running up a staircase above them and jumping over a wall. "On her heels, men!" he shouted, leading them over to the archway that led into the main square where she had escaped to.

Jeanne landed on top of the awning of a merchant's tent, falling right through it and onto some conveniently located sacks of grain. After a moment of confused staring between her and the merchant running the stand, she got up and got right back to her primary objective: escaping. The patrons and merchants stared at her for a moment, wondering why she ran, but they all fled when they saw the soldiers file in in pursuit of her.

The soldiers stopped for a moment, getting in position and taking aim. "Ready. Set. Fire!" the lead soldier ordered.

Jeanne heard this and sucked her teeth. She snatched a large circular shield from a nearby merchant's stand as she passed it by and looped her arm through it, using it to block the bullets she was unable to dodge. Their contact with the shield rang out in her ears and when it stopped, she lowered the shield to see them chasing after her once again. Pulling the shield off of her arm, she tossed it onto the ground in front of her and leaped over to jump on top of it. She rode it across the square, sparks flying from beneath her due to the friction between the shield and the paved ground. Another group of soldiers ran in and blocked the only exit, aiming their bayonets at her. Her eyes desperately scanned the area for something, anything; she was running out of ideas.

Close to the exit, she saw a horse, the reigns not tied to anything, and something clicked. She snickered as her brain set things in motion. She crouched down on the shield to give herself more speed. As she came to the horse, she reached up and grabbed the reigns, lifting her legs to swing onto its back as well as launching the shield into the air, which gave it the momentum of a discus as it flew towards the exit. The soldiers jumped out of the way to dodge it, save for one, who was knocked out cold by the large object. Jeanne grinned at this. "Fabulous party, gentlemen!" she shouted, slapping the horse on its hide. "Remind me to bring drinks next time!"

The horse reared back, and then galloped towards the exit, leaping over the fallen soldier. "After her!" the commanding officer shouted.

They ran after her, a difficult task on foot when chasing a horse. Jeanne looked over her shoulder and then snapped the reigns, causing the horse to speed up. "Ready!" she heard from behind her, "Set!"

"Do they ever give up?" She muttered as she looked behind her again, seeing the soldiers in position with their bayonets ready.

"Fire!"

She lowered her body onto the horse's back as the bullets flew over her. She snapped the reigns once again and coaxed the animal in a south-western direction.

A schooner was anchored at the southern harbor. Aboard it were Will, Elizabeth, Gibbs, Pintel, Ragetti, Marty, Cotton and his faithful parrot, Tia Dalma and Captain Barbossa, along with adorable monkey Jack. Barbossa was standing at the helm while Gibbs, Elizabeth and Will were on the deck below. Will was pacing back and forth rather impatiently, his eyes constantly cutting to the docks. Barbossa looked down at him, his eyes narrowed. "I am beginning to doubt sending that child was the most brilliant idea, Master Turner." Barbossa called down to Will, "'Tis already well past high noon."

Will glanced up at the once deceased pirate. "Jeanne is twenty-four years old, first of all." How ironic that he would be the one saying that. "And she is not a wanted woman for nothing."

"Aye, you should be glad to have her on our side." Gibbs agreed readily, "Jeanne is one of the craftiest, stealthiest pirates ever to grace this crew."

Elizabeth was leaning on the rail, looking over the dock for any sign of Jeanne's return. She squinted a bit as a cloud of dust came into view. She blinked as it came closer. She heard a familiar voice shouting, but the words could not be interpreted. The cloud then became larger and Elizabeth saw that it was Jeanne, on the back of a horse. Will saw her as well and ran over to the bow. Once again, she shouted to them, but was barely heard. "What?" he called.

Jeanne cupped her mouth with one hand, her face turning crimson as she shouted her message one last time, as loud as she could, "Weigh anchor and start shoving off! Now!"

Barbossa heard her order as well and saw the soldiers behind her and rolled his eyes. Somehow this reminded him exactly of Jack. Elizabeth ran to open the sail as Will and Gibbs began to pull the anchor up. Barbossa spun the wheel and the boat began to turn. He looked at Gibbs down on the lower deck. "Stealthy, eh?" He asked with obvious sarcasm.

The horse was now running across the wooden dock and Jeanne was pushing herself to stand on its back, her arms held up at her sides to keep herself balanced. Once the animal reached the edge, it skidded to an abrupt halt and Jeanne was launched from its back, taking the scarf from her neck and catching the wind in it to get her closer to the boat. She let go of one end of the scarf when she was within swimming distance of the ship, diving beneath the water and swimming towards the rising anchor. She grabbed onto it just as it came out of the water, going up to the bow with it. Will rushed over there and grabbed her wrist. She grabbed his as well and let him pull her onto the deck.

Pintel and Ragetti, came from below deck as Jeanne coughed up some of the salty water she had inhaled in her haste. "See, I told you she'd make it!" Ragetti said to Pintel, holding out his hand, "Now, pay up!"

Grumbling, Pintel pulled out his money pouch and dropped it into Ragetti's bony hands before pulling Jeanne to her feet. Elizabeth crossed over to the young brunette as she got to her feet. "Did you get it?" She asked.

Jeanne's eyes were hard as stone and it almost seemed like the temperature dropped a bit as she looked at Elizabeth, pushing her wet hair from her face. "Yes, I did." She flicked her wrist to unroll one of the papers, revealing the diagram she had pilfered. "The map of Sao Feng's bath house."

Elizabeth swallowed with difficulty under the intensity of Jeanne's stare as she took it in her hand. A slow applause came from the upper deck, calling everyone's attention to Barbossa. "Well done, Miss Monroe." He congratulated her. "Seems I have underestimated you." He took off his hat and gave her a sweeping bow, "My apologies."

She shrugged her shoulders, folding the wanted poster in one hand behind her back. "Quite alright, mate." She grinned. "It happens all the time."

She felt something being dropped onto her shoulders and flinched as she turned her head. Everyone, including herself jumped when Tia Dalma was suddenly behind her. Her scarf had been draped over Jeanne's shoulders. She blinked a couple of times as the dark woman smiled at her. "After such a performance, t'would be a shame to be done in by a cold." She chuckled.

Jeanne could not help but laugh at the truth of that statement and gave a quick nod. "Thank you."

She walked across the deck and passed Will, stealthily slipping the folded wanted poster into his hand. Will raised an eyebrow and slowly unfolded the poster. His eyes flew open when he saw her face on it, his shocked gaze moving to her back as she made her way below deck.

Jeanne was in the small cabin she had claimed for herself at the start of the voyage. She shed the sarong and put her black pants back on, pulling her boots onto her feet. Her locket was the next thing to come on. After grabbing her shirt from a nail on the wall and replacing with the sarong, she walked back out the deck.

Will was sitting on a crate near the stern, the poster in hand, when he saw Jeanne emerge from the lower deck, still wearing the tank top with her shirt tossed over her right shoulder. She crossed over to him, taking a seat on the other side of the crate, her back against his. Will's eyes were immediately drawn to the tattoo on her left shoulder. "How long has that been there?" he asked.

She raised her arms to get her sleeves into her shirt. "Four years." She answered as she pulled it over her head, knowing exactly what he was talking about. She placed her hands at the back of her neck and lifted them, pulling her wet hair from beneath the collar of the shirt, "So..." She turned her head towards him, "What do you think?"

He nodded thoughtfully, looking down at the poster again. "Actually, it is a very accurate portrait." Jeanne smirked as she giggled. Will held the poster up and looked between the two faces. "Especially when you do that." He lowered the poster. "It looks as though you've truly made your mark on the world of piracy."

"Yes, I have." Her face was serious again. "It's rather bittersweet, though." She fished her first two wanted posters from her pocket, looking down at the words etched onto them, "These were also made by the Company, but neither of them had my face on them." She took the newest one back from Will, "This means that Beckett is serious about finding me now… Whether I come to him alive or not…"

It was Will's turn to shift positions, facing her. "The song has been sung, Jeanne. Beckett is trying to rid the world of all pirates. You just happen to be one of the many." He placed a hand upon her shoulder, "That's why we are going to Singapore. _All_ of the Pirate Lords must be present if we are to defeat him."

Her eyes flashed with sadness. "Jack is a Pirate Lord, no?" She asked, turning to meet his gaze. "How can we have all of them if he's condemned to the locker?"

"All the more reason to go to Singapore." He said matter-of-factly. Jeanne's eyebrow arched as she silently questioned the statement. "You'll see."

**Ana: I know, I know. After a year and a half of absence, this probably isn't that good. I'm not quitting, though, cuz I'm doint this for someone special.**

**Hanah: Wow... That is a movie line if I ever heard one!**

**Ana: It is not! I really am doing this for someone special!**

**Ayu: (sipping lemonade and watching them argue) Am I the only mature one here? (turns to the audience) If you have a heart, review or Ana will blow a gasket.**


	2. En Route to Singapore

**Ana: (reads over review) Thanks, Chii-Chii. I think... Anymahosit.**

**Hanah: OMG, guess what?**

**Ayu/Ana: ?**

**Hanah: So, I was walking down the street yesterday and the ice cream truck came by and I bought some Shots but then I realized something. I had no money! :)**

**Ana: (anime fall) What the hell kinda-? x(**

**Ayu: -.-' That had _absolutely _nothing to do with the story... Speaking of which, let's get it started :) P.S.- Ana doesn't own PotC**

Chapter 2: En Route to Singapore

Gibbs was at the helm, steering them towards Singapore. In less than three days, they would reach their destination. Barbossa was standing not too far off with monkey Jack sitting upon his shoulder as the two overlooked the ship. Jack tilted his head towards the lower deck and cooed, abruptly jumping from his master's shoulder and scrambling down there, obviously with a purpose in mind.

Barbossa raised an eyebrow as he watched his pet scurry across the deck, and jump up onto Jeanne's shoulder. Jeanne, who had been mopping quietly for the past few minutes, flinched in surprise. Then she saw Jack on her shoulder and giggled as he played with her hair while she continued working. "He's very fond of that child." Barbossa thought out loud.

Gibbs chuckled as he kept the steady heading. "She prefers to be acknowledged as a young woman." He nodded, chuckling as he remembered how she had protected him when they tried to retrieve him from her. "But, aye. The two of them became fast friends on our last voyage."

Barbossa stared down at her, raising an eyebrow as she was as she kicked the mop repeatedly and detached it from the shaft. She then proceeded to splash the water from the bucket beside her over the deck. She tossed the shaft to the side and took a few large paces back, then ran back in the direction she had come, hopping onto the mop and sliding across the deck with a giggle. Jack chattered excitedly, clinging to her head as she repeated this process in the opposite direction again. And again. And again. She looked over the deck, satisfied with her work. She stood at the bow and looked to the upper deck, saluting at Barbossa. "Deck's been swabbed, Barbossa!" She shouted across the deck and picked up the shaft, twirling it in her hands like a baton. "Oh, and, we should pick up a new mop soon."

She climbed onto the rail and used the shaft to balance herself as she walked along it. It was Barbossa's turn to be amused. "She certainly has her own way of doing things." He noted as he watched her antics.

"Jeanne is a free spirit. Always has been." Gibbs also took a short glance at her. "As untamable as the waves and as unpredictable as the breeze. And as unmovable as a mountain when she needs to be."

A corner of the captain's mouth turned upwards, forming a half smile. "Jack would often carry on about the girl that he had in Tortuga." He took another look at her, "But I must say, seeing her for myself is a rather enlightening experience..."

Will was sitting in the galley, his expression unreadable. Since the start of this new adventure, he and Elizabeth had not said two words to one another. Every time he looked at her, the image of her and Jack kissing haunted his mind. A number of feelings were eating away at his insides. Anger. Depression. Disappointment. Envy. These constantly mixed, but the oil among the water of his emotions was confusion. The two had often proclaimed their love to one another in Port Royal. He had nearly been killed by the Pelegostos and the Kraken to ensure her safety. On Isla Cruces, she had been overjoyed to see him, saying she had come to find him. Knowing that, seeing Elizabeth kissing Jack was a slap in the face.

Lost in thought, the palm of Will's hand went over his face as he lowered his head.

A very quiet pair of feet made their way down the small flight of steps, but the creak of the last step summoned Will's attention. Standing there was the very person who would not leave his thoughts. That image replayed itself in the back of his brain again. Time seemed to stand still as the two locked eyes, a heavy silence between them. In an instant, Elizabeth wordlessly turned away and dashed back up the steps. Will stood up quickly. He ran up the steps, taking them two at a time.

By the time Will reached the deck, Elizabeth seemed to have disappeared into thin air. "Elizabeth?" he called out to her, practically jogging across the deck, "Elizabeth?"

"Somebody's rather lively." Will turned to see Jeanne walking along the edge of the rail like a tight roper, Jack hanging from the shaft turned staff by his tail. "Hey."

The two had become so close as of late that he had developed a sort of protective brother instinct; then again, who wouldn't after seeing the danger this woman would willingly put herself in. He was prepared to scold her on how dangerous it was to do what she was doing and that she could fall into the sea, but pushed that aside for later. It was highly likely that she would not listen anyway. "I take it you've been out here awhile." He said.

"Aye, almost all day." She replied, now hopping across the rail on one foot.

Will nearly gave in to the impulse to snatch her off of the rail and back onto the deck, but took a breath, calming himself. "Did you happen to see Elizabeth out here?" he asked, rubbing one of his temples with two fingers.

Her warm, hazel eyes suddenly darkened a shade, like the hardened sap on a tree in the fall. "I don't know. What do I care?" She suddenly found the wood beneath her feet more interesting, "Do I look like a traitor's keeper?"

He pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "So I take it that's a no."

Jeanne leaped from the rail and landed rather stylishly in a sitting position atop an array of crates and nets, Jack seating himself in her lap. "Take that as a _definite_ no." She hissed, tickling the monkey under his chin.

Will's head hung once again as he walked back towards the galley. Jeanne's eyes stayed on his back until he was completely out of sight. She hated being mean to him, but he had brought up a rather touchy subject. She kicked the crate she was sitting on a couple of times, sighing. "He's gone."

Elizabeth's head arose from behind the crates beside Jeanne. She sighed with relief and turned to the brunette, trying to avoid looking her into the eye. The chill in Jeanne's stare made her feel as if she had been eternally condemned by the goddess of winter. "You owe me, lady." Jeanne reminded her.

Elizabeth nodded and turned to leave, but stopped for a moment to cut a glance at Jeanne. "Thank you." She said with a small smile.

Jeanne glared at her. "Don't take it to heart." She snarled. "It won't happen again."

Elizabeth slowly backed away, turning on her heel and trotting off. Jack cooed softly, nuzzling Jeanne's stomach. She looked down to see him looking back up at her with wide, glassy eyes. "Oh, please don't look at me like that, Ja... Monkey mate." She set him down, allowing him to scamper across the deck, "It's her own fault..."

Night had fallen and a majority of the crew had retired to the forecastle to rest. Gibbs was still at the helm, guiding the ship across the Andaman Sea.

Ragetti, Pintel and Marty were below deck, playing with a pair of dice they had found. Ragetti was rocking them in his hands vigorously. Pintel and Marty's faces had twisted into scowls. Pintel groaned. "You've been rocking them too long! They'll be dust by the time you're through!"

"I can't help it!" Ragetti argued, shaking them harder as he glanced at the pile set between the three of them. "I need to win it!"

In the pile there were three pistols, a money pouch, some hand grenades and Ragetti's wooden eye. Another minute went by and Ragetti was still shaking the dice. "Just roll 'em!" Marty and Pintel shouted.

Being the naturally skittish pirate he was, Ragetti flinched, sending the dice flying through the air. They hit the floor with a click and flipped over to reveal a six and a one. "Seven!" Ragetti cheered, drawing the wagering pile closer to him. "Yes!"

"'Ey! You cheated!" Marty protested, rising to his feet, which would have been more menacing if he were a few feet taller.

Ragetti was putting his false eye back into its socket as he spoke. "You can't cheat in a game of chance!"

"You can if your name is Ragetti!" Pintel joined into the argument.

Marty's eyes suddenly went wide and he put a finger to his lips. "SHHHH!" His finger was then pointed towards the cabin behind the staircase, Jeanne's cabin.

The three men were suddenly cautious, seeing as Jeanne announced her retirement for the night. According to Jack, she was not the most forgiving in regards to awakening and they didn't want to be in the position of the last man to wake her. Since none of them were brave enough to see if she had stirred from the noise, Ragetti simply gathered his winnings and they all made quiet haste for the forecastle.

Really, they had nothing to fear.

Jeanne sat on her cot with her back against the wall and one knee drawn up to her chest, one hand resting lazily at her side. Her other hand, draped over her knee, was closed around the neck of a bottle of rum that she had been steadily drinking out of. Her face seemed to have become more mature as of late, robbed of the carefree joy she once possessed. It was devoid of emotion, but those bright hazel eyes of hers, shining in the dim light of the oil lamp above her head, were ringed with sadness. She closed her eyes for a moment, letting out a sigh.

Then, her eyes swiftly opened again and she raised the bottle to her lips, taking a big, long swig. A painful, hollow feeling gnawed at her insides and her head ached. She wanted so badly to go to sleep, but every time she closed her eyes, Jack's face would come into her mind. Since they'd reunited after so long a time, she had unknowingly become very accustomed to the fact that they were always side by side again. Whether she wanted to admit it or not—and her pride tried its best to keep her from doing so—him not being there was tearing her apart. Even holding her monkey mate would weigh heavily on her heart because Barbossa had told her what his real name was.

Now that she actually had some time alone with her thoughts, she had realized some things. Whenever Jack had been around her, she had always struggled with an inner turmoil. Sure, he would aggravate her, but secretly she would enjoy every minute of it. She would argue with him, but usually continued it just so they would be talking. And she had always felt the most comfortable around him. It was not until after Elizabeth kissed him that these realizations really hit her and now that he was gone, depression, grief and, most of all, heartbreak was her lot. To conclude, she unfortunately realized that she loved him, and there was absolutely nothing she could do about it.

"You bastard…" she whispered as she took another drink.

* * *

Barbossa was in the captain's cabin with Tia Dalma. The two were sitting at the large desk while Tia Dalma gently rocked her crab claws in her hands, muttering to herself, with Barbossa looking at her expectantly. At last, she tossed them onto the table, examining them carefully. She frowned at the pattern she saw before her. "Something wrong?" Barbossa asked her.

She looked up at him. "Gettin' to Sao Feng will not go as you may've hoped." she warned him, raising her hands for emphasis, "Beckett's troops will be linin' the streets of Singapore. Things bein' the way they are, t'will be difficult to manage there." Barbossa stroked his beard as he eyed the claws laid down by the voodoo priestess. Tia Dalma folded her arms over her chest, "What are you goin' to do, Barbossa?"

The next morning, the small crew had assembled on deck, having been summoned by Barbossa. He and Tia Dalma stood at the upper deck. "As you all know," Barbossa began, "In two days time, we will have arrived in Singapore. However, according to Miss Tia Dalma's foresight, it will not be so simple a task."

Will scanned the small group and found one face missing. He stepped back and slipped below deck, gliding around the corner and behind the stairs to Jeanne's cabin. He lightly tapped the door with one of his knuckles. "Jeanne?" He received no reply from the other side of the door. He pounded on it. "Jeanne, the crew is on deck. Time to wake up." Still no reply. "Jeanne?"

Will pushed the door open, stepping inside the small room. Jeanne was asleep in the cot tangled up in the blankets, one arm hanging over the side. He wrinkled his nose for she smelled of alcohol. He looked down at her hand and saw her fingers enclosed around the neck of a half-empty bottle of rum. Another bottle, this one empty, was on the floor. Clearly, she had drunk herself into slumber the night before, as she had the past few nights he had visited her.

A crooked, sympathetic smile came across Will's face as he knelt in front of her, gently shaking her. "Jeanne, wake up."

The brunette's eyes opened. She blinked to adjust her foggy vision, focusing on Will. "Are we in Singapore?" She asked slowly, lifting the bottle to take a swig.

Will shook his head, stopping her from putting the it to her lips. He then reached down to pry her fingers from the bottle, setting it under the bed. "We're having a meeting on deck. All crewmen—and women are required to be there."

She simply yawned. "Mm-hmm." She closed her eyes again.

"All crewmen and women—" He repeated, a bit louder than before.

"I haven't gone deaf, William. And as much as I'd love to join your little party..." She slowly opened her eyes and looked up at him, "I can't get up, as I've no feeling in my legs."

Will chuckled and turned his back to her. Her blurred thoughts made her a bit unsure of what he was doing. Then, as if two flint stones had sparked in her brain, she leaned forward, wrapping her arms around his neck. He stood up and lifted Jeanne onto his back, supporting her legs with his forearms. As he carried her up the stairs, he noticed that she was much lighter than she looked, despite the fact that she was a walking stomach and something of an alcoholic. Her figure did not show either one, though.

When he reached the top step they were still discussing the obstacle of the East India Trading Company. "Is there any among us that knows how we can avoid this?" Barbossa challenged them.

Jeanne was only half-awake and was still a bit confused about the situation. "What's going on?" she asked in a whisper.

"The Company is in Singapore." Will told her, "It is a bit of a hindrance in getting to Sao Feng."

"Ah..."

"Anyone?" Barbossa asked again.

"Actually," Elizabeth spoke up, "There is a way." All eyes were on her now, including Jeanne's, which were clouded with disdain. "I saw the map that Jeanne had brought. There is a network of waterways running through the city that lead towards Sao Feng's fortress. We can ride the currents there."

Barbossa raised his eyebrow, his interest piqued. The crew began to whisper amongst themselves. "Knowing Sao Feng, there will most likely be guards as we get closer to his fortress, and many inside it."

"What if there is more than one movement in this situation?" Jeanne's slurred voice joined in the debate, "If we are to get into the fortress, we must be prepared for anything." She used her hand to illustrate the movement of a boat, "While some travel directly on the water in a boat," She dipped her hand below the invisible water, "Others can travel below it on the same path, in case there's trouble."

Elizabeth nodded in agreement to the idea. Barbossa tapped his fingers to the rail. He had also seen the map and was mentally setting things in motion as the speaking progressed. "Aye, aye. Some could travel through the sewers that lead below his floorboards." He turned to the voodoo priestess beside him, "What say you, Tia Dalma?"

The woman's eyes closed and from her mouth came an inaudible chant. The crew stood still, silent tension in the air. She opened her eyes, "Expect obstacles along the way, but do not lose hope." She told them, "Jack's freedom is not far off the horizon."

Barbossa smiled a grey smile, holding his hands out toward her. "And there you have it." He chuckled, then frowned, "Now back to work, ya bilge rats!"

The crew dispersed and went back to their stations to begin the day's work. Jeanne, still sitting on Will's back, rested her head in the curve of his neck and closed her eyes. "Meeting adjourned. Now, may I please go back to bed?"

He laughed at the childish whine he heard in her voice. It made her seem like a four-year-old in a twenty-four-year-old's body. He turned and made his way towards the lower deck. "Master Turner!" He turned around again as Barbossa's voice boomed over the deck. A sly smile was plastered on his face as he looked at the buccaneer. "I have a special assignment for you..."

Will nodded his head towards the semi-conscious woman on his back as he boosted her higher, as if telling Barbossa to wait. He then resumed his walk to Jeanne's cabin, laying her back down gently, for she had already fallen asleep again, and covered her up.

He walked out of her room and back onto the deck to Barbossa, standing in front of him. "What sort of assignment do you have in mind?" he asked.

**Ayu: Well, that was coolio!**

**Ana: It was just a filler, Ayu-chan.**

**Hanah: Yeah, but we all know what's coming after this. Heck yeah!**

**Ana/Ayu/Hanah: Ja mata ne!**


	3. The Pirate Lord of Singapore

**Ana: Well, here we are in Chapter three.**

**Hanah: Which is going to be one of the more...**

**Ayu: Actiony? :)**

**Hanah: Yeah, actiony! One of the more actiony chapters of the story.**

**Ana: Now let's sit back, relax, (suddenly wearing Chinese robes and twirling an umbrella) and take a trip to Singapore.**

**Ayu: Let's go! And she still doesn't own Pirates in any way. (gets hit by Ana's umbrella)**

Chapter 3: The Pirate Lord of Singapore

Singapore was dark, the night having come quickly and quietly. The streets were nearly empty. A few fishermen here and there, but that was typical. Every now and then, the marching of Company soldiers would break the silence. The silence was then replaced by the notes of a woman's alto voice carrying below the city's many bridges.

Elizabeth and Jeanne were sitting in a small boat. Elizabeth was wearing the traditional clothes of a Singapore commoner, a blue tunic and black pants with a wide-brimmed coolie hat upon her head. Jeanne was in an elegant robe, her lips and eyes lightly colored and her hair held up in a bun by eight jeweled hair pins. Elizabeth was rowing the boat through the city, giving the illusion that she was granting passage to royalty. Because of this, no one bothered them. "Some have died and some are alive." Elizabeth sang as they traveled further, "Others sail on the sea."

"With the keys to the cage," Jeanne's quiet voice chimed in, "And the devil to pay, we lay to Fiddler's Green." She waved a silk fan over her face, her eyes cautiously scanning the area. "The bell has been raised from its watery grave. Do you hear its sepulchral tone?"

Their eyes slowly shifted when they saw the soldiers marching on the bridge ahead of them. Elizabeth picked up the next lines. "A call to all, pay heed the squall." She was quiet as they passed below the bridge. A fuse exploded, sending a shower of sparks over one of the bridges. She cautiously turned her eyes back to the water, seeing a dock ahead, "Turn your sails to home."

As Elizabeth stopped the boat beside the dock, she and Jeanne began to sing together. "Yo ho, haul together. Hoist the colors high." Elizabeth stepped out of the boat, extending a hand to help Jeanne out as well. "Heave ho—"

"Thief and beggar!" Tai Huang finished the song as he and two of his men emerged from the shadows, "Never shall we die."

The two women stopped, eying the men before them, who cautiously eyed them back. "A dangerous song to be singing, for anyone ignorant of its meaning." Tai Huang cautioned them, "Particularly women." He looked them over carefully with a small smile. "Particularly women _alone_."

"What makes you think they're alone?" Barbossa's gruff voice asked as he came down a small stone staircase just around the corner.

Tai Huang turned his head to the captain, now walking towards him, narrowing his eyes. "You protect them?"

In the next second Elizabeth had him in a headlock, a knife at his throat. His men each put a pistol to her head. Jeanne reached into the sleeves of her robe and pulled out two pistols of her own, cocking them as she pressed one to the chin of each man. She was not going to let Elizabeth be taken out by anyone unless it was herself. "And what makes you think we need protecting?" Elizabeth asked Tai Huang, who looked unfazed by all of this.

Barbossa smirked at the men. "Watch the little one, she has a bit of a trigger-finger." Jeanne glared at him, knowing the comment was obviously out of spite. As he turned the conversation to Tai Huang, "Your master's expectin' us, and three unexpected deaths would cast a slight pall on our meeting."

Elizabeth slowly released Tai Huang and Jeanne and his men put their pistols away for the time being. The footsteps and shouting of soldiers was heard nearby and one of Tai Huang's men alerted all of them. They pressed themselves to the wall as the small regiment passed them by. The Oriental pirate then took off around the corner, the rest of the group following after him.

As they were led through the city's underground, Jeanne put her hands into her sleeves and kept her eyes forward as she walked. Barbossa eyed her with a small grin. "You've certainly stepped into your role, Miss Monroe."

She simply shrugged her shoulders and raised her chin, still miffed about being called little earlier. Elizabeth looked past Jeanne, who was standing in between her and Barbossa. "Have you heard anything from Will?" she asked him.

Jeanne looked at Barbossa expectantly at the question. He briefly looked down at the two of them. "I trust Master Turner to acquire the charts and you two to remember your place in the presence of Captain Sao Feng."

"Is he really that terrifying?" Elizabeth asked monotonously.

"He's much like myself, but absent my merciful nature and sense of fair play." Jeanne audibly snorted at the comment, calling Barbossa's attention to her. "So, that mouth you use with me, keep it shut."

She simply rolled her eyes in reply.

Tai Huang stopped at a door, knocking on it as he removed his hat. A small slot near the top of the door opened and he said something to the person on the other side of it. The door then swung open and he led them inside. Elizabeth looked at the vast area, never having seen anything like this.

They were then stopped further inside, having been asked to remove their weapons. Barbossa gave up his sword and two pistols, Elizabeth passed her knife, and Jeanne handed over her pistols and a stolen sword, which she had hidden under the skirt of the robe—she didn't want to risk losing Delilah. The women stepped forward and Tai Huang stopped them. "You think because they are women we would not suspect them of treachery?" He asked Barbossa.

Barbossa looked at them and back to Tai Huang, "Well, when you put it that way…"

He turned back to them. "Remove, please." He requested.

Elizabeth untied the string that held the coolie hat to her back. She pulled off her jacket to reveal an array of weapons attached to her body. Jeanne took two of the pins from her hair, revealing that they were projectile needles, a few strands of hair falling out of the bun. Tai Huang looked at Barbossa, who simply smiled.

Elizabeth put the weapons belt on the table. She also pulled out small grenade, placing on the table. Just when they thought she was done, she pulled out a long rifle. Barbossa and Jeanne's eyebrows scrunched together as they looked at each other, then at Elizabeth's back, wondering how she had fit such a long weapon back there. Jeanne held her sleeves over the table and shook them, two knives and a few grenades falling out of them. Barbossa nodded at them. The two stepped forward, only to get stopped again. "Remove." He said again, "Please."

Elizabeth's mouth dropped and she looked down at her outfit as she realized what he meant. A discomforting smile spread across his face. Jeanne shrugged and undid the sash holding her robe together. The men around them were ogling her as the robe came down, but they were disappointed to see that she had a green Chinese dress cut right above her knees on underneath it. "Men." She said, a cheeky grin lifting the corner of her mouth.

Tai Huang tossed her a dress similar to Jeanne's, in blue, the men's attention now on her.

* * *

A large man led Tai Huang, Barbossa, Elizabeth and Jeanne through the bathhouse. Men were eying the women from all directions and Elizabeth was struggling to keep the hem of the dress down. Since she was taller than Jeanne, it was a bit more difficult for her. She looked at the brunette, who was walking like it was nothing. "How are you so casual about this?" she asked in a whisper.

"Let's see… Could it be that I'm a barmaid from Tortuga?" She whispered back sarcastically as she raised the hem of her dress to show a pair of black shorts beneath it, the material very similar to that of her pants. "And modified pants."

The man leading them stepped aside and nodded his head to a man's silhouette engulfed by steam and being attended to by twin girls. When the man turned around, they saw it was the Pirate Lord of Singapore himself, Sao Feng. Barbossa bowed. Elizabeth and Jeanne were still upright until Barbossa motioned for them to bow as well. "Captain Barbossa." Sao Feng addressed the pirate and the three of them stood up again, "Welcome to Singapore." He sniffed a cloth in his hand then turned to one of his servants. "More steam."

She nodded and pulled a chord. In a few seconds time, more steam came up to them from below. Sao Feng stepped down towards the group. "I understand that you have a... request to make of me." He said, stopping in front of Barbossa

"More of a proposal to put it to ye." Barbossa clarified, "I have a venture underway and I happen to find myself in need of a ship and a crew."

"Hm…" Sao Feng put his long nails to the back of his head, scratching it, "It's an odd coincidence…"

"Because you happen to have a ship and a crew you don't need?" Elizabeth asked hopefully, peeking around Barbossa.

Barbossa gave her a look. "Shut up…" Jeanne cautioned out of the corner of her mouth.

"No." Sao Feng replied, beginning to walk towards an old man sitting in a chair. "Because earlier this day, not too far from here, a thief broke into my most revered uncle's temple and tried to make off with these." He picked up a cylindrical object from the man and held it in his hands. "The navigational charts, the route to the farthest gate." He smirked, throwing it to Tai Huang, who caught it with ease. "Wouldn't it be amazing if this venture of yours took you to a world beyond this one?"

"It would strain credulity at that." Barbossa said casually.

Sao Feng stepped back and his smirk grew, his eyes staying on Barbossa. He turned and nodded to the men at the tub in the corner. They pulled a drenched man out of the water, his arms tied to a pole. When he lifted his head to gasp for air, the group saw that it was Will. Elizabeth's eyes went wide for a brief moment.

Sao Feng pointed at him. "This is the thief. Is his face familiar to you?" Barbossa, Elizabeth and Jeanne all shook their heads. Sao Feng pulled out a long stake after carefully studying their face, taking aim for Will's chin, "Then I guess he has no further need for it."

Sao Feng pulled it back and Jeanne subtly grasped the edge of her dress. As Sao Feng nearly drove it into Will, Elizabeth nearly shouted, covering her mouth in an effort to hide it. The Pirate Lord heard it, however, and smirked, putting the weapon away. "You come into my city…" He took a few steps towards them, "And you betray my hospitality."

Jeanne's eyes narrowed, anger burning in her them. "Hospitality, my…" She started, rolling up one of her sleeves and walking towards him.

Barbossa put a stiff arm up to stop the hot-tempered piratesse and keep her in line. "Sao Feng, I assure you, I had no idea—"

"That he would get caught!" he cut Barbossa off with a shout.

Some of Sao Feng's men stepped out of their baths, looking rather menacing as they approached the group. Sao Feng looked Barbossa dead in the eye, then stepped away. "You intend to attempt a voyage to Davy Jones' Locker." Barbossa now had to stop Elizabeth as she took a step forward. "But I can't help but wonder," He turned to face his "guests" once again, "Why?"

Barbossa stared up at him for a moment as he fished a coin from his pocket, flipping it to him. He looked down at it for a moment, and then abruptly spit on it, putting it to his ear. An eerie ringing resonated from the coin, making Sao Feng's eyes narrow. "The song has been sung." Barbossa said, stepping forward, "The time is upon us. We must convene the Brethren Court. As one of the nine Pirate Lords, you must honor the call."

Sao Feng made a fist around the coin. "More steam…" He muttered to one of the twins.

She nodded and pulled the chord. However, no steam came from beneath the floor boards like before. Barbossa, Jeanne and Elizabeth's eyes scrolled around confusedly at this. Sao Feng turned to the girl sharply, "More steam!" he shouted at her.

She, just as surprised as the others, pulled the chord again. This time, the steam came up and Sao Feng was pleased for the moment. "There is a price on all of our heads, it is true," He began, "Since it seems that the only way a pirate can turn a profit anymore…" He turned his attention to Will as he finished his statement, "Is by betraying other pirates."

Barbossa continued to plead his case. "It be time to put our differences aside. The first Brethren Court gave us rule of the seas. Now, that rule is being challenged by Lord Cutler Beckett!"

"Against the East India Trading Company, what value is the Brethren Court?" Sao Feng asked in response. Jeanne glanced at Elizabeth, seeing the strain in her face as she tried to hold herself back. "What can _any _of us do?"

"You can fight!" Elizabeth answered the question, being grabbed as she tried to walk to Sao Feng. "Get off me!" She shoved him off and strode over to him. "You are Sao Feng, the Pirate Lord of Singapore. You command an age of piracy where bold captains sail free waters. Where waves aren't measured in feet, but increments of fear, and those who pass the test become legend. Would you have that era come to an end on your watch?"

Barbossa's eyes cut confusedly between her and Jeanne, who had been standing there silently this whole time. Up until now, he had thought of Jeanne as the impertinent one.

Jeanne nodded in agreement, also stepping forward. "She's right." A man stepped in front of her as she walked. She gave him her most lethal look and he drew his hand back, he swallowed hard. He stepped aside, letting her continue. "Every pirate, from every corner of the globe," She gestured to herself, "Of every age and gender is gathering to fight Beckett. We all know the risk, but we are completely ready to do what's necessary, to give our lives to protect our way of life."

She clicked her tongue, placing her hands on her hips once she got to the first step in front of him. "At least most of us are. Some of us stay quivering like a baby in their bathwater… What's wrong, Sao Feng? Are you that much of a coward?"

Now things made sense to Barbossa again. However, he really regretted not sewing Jeanne's lips shut from the beginning as he originally planned.

Sao Feng took a moment to stare at the two women who dared to speak out against him. He shot the brunette in front of him a half smile and took a step forward, putting him face to face with her. He stared her down and she stared right back, her gaze unyielding. He let out a silent chuckle. "You have a lot of nerve, Jeanette Monroe. It is truly a rare occurrence to see one so young speak with so much authority."

Jeanne raised an eyebrow at the fact that he already knew her name, keeping an eye on him as he walked past her. He stepped toward Elizabeth and she instinctively stepped back. He slowly circled her, smirking at her. "But there is more to you than meets the eye, isn't there, Elizabeth Swann?" he leaned to whisper in her ear, "And the eye does not go wanting…"

A disgusted frown twisted Will's face. Sao Feng, once again, turned around and walked back to his steam area, "But I cannot help but notice, you," He pointed at Barbossa, "Have failed to answer my question. What is it you seek in Davy Jones' Locker?"

"Jack Sparrow." Will finally spoke.

The twins giggled at the mention of his name. Jeanne rolled her eyes to the ceiling, sucking her teeth again. "Jack, you lecherous idiot…" She scolded him, wherever he was, shaking her head.

After the girls regained their composure, Will spoke again. "He's one of the Pirate Lords."

Sao Feng's face was clouding with fury. "The only reason I would want Jack Sparrow returned from the land of the dead, is so I could send him back myself!" He fumed, kicking a pot in his anger.

Barbossa made his way over to Sao Feng, looking him in the eye again. "Jack Sparrow holds one of the nine Pieces of Eight." He reminded him, waving a hand towards Jeanne, "He failed to pass it along to his successor before he died, so we _must_ go and get him back."

Sao Feng looked at one of the men in front of him, his eyes drawn to the melting dragon tattoo on his back. He looked back at Barbossa, assuming the man was with him. "So, you admit you have deceived me…" He whipped out his blade, "Weapons!" He shouted to his men.

Barbossa stepped back beside Elizabeth as the men jumped out of the tubs with blades of all lengths and shapes. Jeanne jumped down with them and tightened her fists, ready to fight weaponless. "Sao Feng, I assure you, our intentions are strictly honorable!" Barbossa insisted.

Six swords flew up from between the floor boards, landing in the hands of Barbossa, Elizabeth and Jeanne. The young brunette grinned at one of the swords, which had a red sash tied to the hilt. "Hey there, Delilah."

Sao Feng narrowed his eyes at Barbossa, who could do nothing but smile, feigning innocent. Sao Feng grabbed the impostor, pushing his blade to his throat. "Drop your weapons, or I kill the man!"

Barbossa and Elizabeth exchanged confused expressions with one another. He looked over at Jeanne and she simply shrugged. They did not remember having this man in their crew. Barbossa turned back to Sao Feng. "Kill him, he's not our man." He told him honestly.

"If he's not with you," Will said from his corner, calling everyone's attention to him, "And he's not with us… Who's he with?"

The room went silent for a moment. Jeanne's large hazel eyes went wide and the color left her face. "Dear God…" She murmured.

Suddenly, the East India Trading Company soldiers, led by Beckett's right hand man, burst through a wall, opening fire on the bath house. Pirates were being taken down left and right, save for the… heroes, for the moment. Another wall broke down, more soldiers coming through. Barbossa sliced one of the soldiers, Sao Feng expertly flipping another over. Elizabeth tossed Will a sword and he freed himself of the wooden pole he had been tied to and jumped right into the fight.

Elizabeth and Will glanced at Jeanne out of the corners of their eyes, a touch bit surprised at what they saw. They knew she was a formidable opponent in combat, but it seemed that her true element was an all-out brawl.

She caught the blade of a soldier's bayonet between both of her swords and slid beneath his legs, hitting him between the shoulder blades with the hilt of one sword while simultaneously slashing another soldier's stomach with the other. On each side, a soldier threatened to run her through with their bayonets. She blocked both with her swords and swiftly raised her leg to kick one in the jaw, wrapping Delilah's sash around the other's neck and pulling him into a headbutt. He dropped unconscious. She saw another aiming for her with a pistol and she reached into her hair and pulled out one the hairpins and pulled a rubber sleeve off of it with her teeth, throwing it straight into his neck. Since the weapon was tipped in poison, he went down in a matter of seconds. She couldn't lose, for losing meant being taken to Beckett and she had absolutely no intention of honoring their agreement.

From across the room, Mercer saw Elizabeth and took aim. Just before the shot was fired, Will pushed her out of the way and the bullet flew into the forehead of one of Sao Feng's twins.

The group was faced with a dilemma when a group of soldiers had their bayonets on them. "Ready, Set, Fire!"

The floor beneath them suddenly exploded and Gibbs led the rest of the crew out of the hole, all of them firing away and running out of the bath house and to the streets.

The battle of pirates versus Company was still raging on outside. Elizabeth was hacking through soldiers as she ran, Jeanne covering the ones she missed behind her with her own blades. In all of the excitement, they had failed to realize that Will had mysteriously disappeared.

Jack the monkey even played a part in all of this. The animal lit the fuse to a rocket and it flew into a large supply of fireworks, causing the whole area to explode. Barbossa turned to his pet, "Thank you, Jack!"

Jack chattered in response.

Will, Tai Huang and many other men met up with the rest of the crew, including Tia Dalma, who had also created an explosion herself. "You have the charts?" Barbossa asked Will.

"And better yet." Will replied, tossing the charts to him, "A ship and a crew."

"Where's Sao Feng?" Jeanne wanted to know, noticing that he was not present.

"He'll cover our escape and meet us at Shipwreck Cove."

"This way, be quick!" Huang ordered, leading them to the docks.

Will and Elizabeth stood for a moment, locked in their first serious gaze since the start of the new adventure. Jeanne turned around and grabbed Will by the sleeve. "This way, be _quick_." She said, putting emphasis on the last word.

Will put his arm around Elizabeth's shoulder and they followed Jeanne to their new ship, the _Hai Peng_.

The ship was pulling out to sea. Tia Dalma stood near the bow, looking somewhat distracted. Elizabeth and Jeanne walked over to her, standing on either side of her. "There's no place left for Sao Feng to cower. Do you think he will honor the call?"

"Well, considering we demolished his domain, he has no choice, right?" Jeanne added to the question.

"I cannot say." The dark woman answered, holding her distant gaze, "There's an evil on these seas that even the most staunch and bloodthirsty pirates have come to fear…"

**Hanah: Well, we did it!**

**Ana: Ahem...**

**Hanah: ...We did it!**

**Ana: We? I did all of the writing and the typing!**

**Ayu: (puts ice packs on Ana's sore hands) She has a point, Hanah.**

**Ana/Ayu/Hanah: Please review!**


	4. Icy Seas and Icier Hearts

**Hanah: ... (waves) Hello! Um... Anatonia and Ayu went shopping and left me in charge. So... Enjoy the chapter, I guess. Oh! Oh! And Ana _still_ doesn't own Pirates of the Caribbean in any way. It's all Disney. (a squeaky hammer pops out of the wall and bops her on the head)**

**_Ana's tape recorder: That happens _****every_ time you say that. Good luck. Hee hee hee hee... :3_**

Chapter 4: Icy Seas and Icier Hearts

The _Hai Peng _was sailing in a sea full of ice burgs, snowflakes gently sprinkling over the crew. Barbossa was at the helm, navigating the ship through the icy waters. Elizabeth was sitting on the staircase behind him, tightly wrapped up in a blanket.

Sitting nearby were Pintel, Ragetti, monkey Jack and Jeanne trying to keep themselves warm. "No one said anything about c-cold…"Pintel groused, rubbing his arms in an attempt to regain feeling in them.

"I'm sure there's a-a good reason for our suffering." Ragetti said through chattering teeth.

Jeanne barked out a chuckle on a frigid exhale, one wind-chapped corner of her mouth lifting with a sardonic grin. "I'm sure there are volumes of good reasons for my own sins alone."

Jack couldn't take it anymore and crawled over Pintel and Ragetti and up Jeanne's shirt, poking his head out of the top of it, still shivering. Jeanne wrapped her arms around herself and the monkey, rocking herself back and forth and rubbing her arms with her teeth painfully banging against each other. Pintel and Ragetti looked over at her. "You know, Jeanne," Ragetti began, "H-he's got the right idea. Sharing body heat is the best way to keep from f-freezing to death."

Jeanne glared at him from beneath her snow-covered eyelashes. "N-not on y-your life, scarecrow…" She stammered through her chills, "A-a-and w-who said you could suddenly be so f-familiar with me, huh? It's 'Miss Monroe' to you…"

The two pirates looked at each other—they could not believe that she could be so stubborn at a time like this—then shrugged their shoulders, sitting closer together. Jeanne held Jack closer to her body, trying to share any warmth she had with him and vice versa. This was getting her nowhere, though. Jack was completely content. As for Jeanne… Well, there's only so much warmth one can receive from a monkey.

A strong, frosty breeze swept over the boat, making it too much to bear. Jeanne stood up and waved her hand from side to side in front of Pintel and Ragetti; even silently she was ordering them around. The two took her signal and moved to make room for her on the bench. She sat in between them and they put their arms around her shoulders, the three of them huddling together.

The woman sighed in content. Human warmth was definitely more effective, no offense to her small friend. Completely contrary to what she initially thought, Jeanne had actually grown fond of the wacky duo, especially after all they went through to try to cheer her up as they crossed to India a week or so earlier.

_Jeanne was sitting in one of the rope webs near the bow of the ship, silently looking out at the sea with exhaustion pure in her hazel eyes. She had not slept well the night before, the silence in her room making her uncomfortable. She had become used to the fact that on the last voyage she and Jack had always argued until Jeanne couldn't argue anymore and would fall asleep. Remembering that made her miss him and kept her awake._

_She reached under her cot and fished out a bottle of rum she'd manage to snatch amidst the chaos in Singapore. Most nights as of late, she had been drinking herself to sleep by aid of rum. However, she ended up thinking of Jack and the many laughs they shared over rum. The memory made her miss him more and burst into tears. Will just happened to come to visit his adoptive sister, but ended up, instead, comforting her until she had literally cried herself to sleep. Neither one was aware that anyone else had been listening._

_Ragetti and Pintel stared at her from the other side of the deck, still surprised that they had heard her crying and that she had not yelled at anyone the entire day. Or even threatened them. She just sat up in the ropes, silently staring out at the sea. "It's a sad sight, ain't it?" Pintel said, shaking his head. Ragetti nodded in response. "Someone oughta try and lift 'er spirits."_

_They looked at each other, their similar thought-process going to work. Then, they walked across the deck to where she was. Ragetti stepped underneath the webbing and tugged it a little bit, alerting Jeanne to their presence. "Cheer up, Miss Monroe." She looked down to see him looking up at her with a reassuring smile on his face, "We'll get Captain Jack back."_

_"Yeah." Pintel joined in with a grin, "You'll be quarrelin' like a couple of old married bats again in no time."_

_They were hoping to at least get her to go into one of her amusing tantrums of denial, but she only sighed, her eyes returning to the water. Their faces fell. Seeing as how getting her angry was the only thing they had thought of to snap her out of it, her reaction put them at a loss for what to do. Pintel then pulled Ragetti down to his level, whispering something in his ear. His cohort nodded enthusiastically and they shook hands before they shuffled below deck._

_They emerged, not to long after, Pintel juggling plates as Ragetti balanced himself on a barrel, both of them humming a little circus tune. Jeanne tilted her head and gave them a look that screamed of the fact that she had told them not to the drink sea water. All of a sudden, Ragetti started rolling in Pintel's direction, nearly bowling him over, and making him drop the plates in shock. "That wasn't part of the act!" Pintel scolded him._

_Ragetti jumped from the barrel, "Forget the act! How're we going to tell Barbossa, we broke _four_ plates?"_

_A small smile pushed onto Jeanne's face and she put a hand over her mouth as a few quiet giggles came out. The two looked up at the sound and shook hands, having accomplished their mission._

Jeanne snuggled herself in between them, still holding Jack to her. "W-who knew finding Jack would be so… Nippy?" She asked.

Pintel frowned. "Why don't that obeah woman just bring Jack back the same way she brought back Barbossa?" he asked bitterly.

"Because Barbossa was only dead."

"Whoa!" Jeanne shouted.

The three of them jumped as Tia Dalma, once again, seemed to appear out of nowhere, her face stern. "Jack Sparrow is taken, body and soul, to a place not of death, but punishment. The worst fate a person can bring 'pon 'imself, stretching on forever. That's what awaits in Davy Jones' Locker!" She hissed, walking past them.

A jittery smile came onto Ragetti's face. "Yeah." He nudged Jeanne in the ribs, or rather in the monkey. "I knew there was a good reason."

Jeanne rolled her eyes, trying to stop the smile that was coming onto her own face when she saw Pintel's deadpan face. "Oh, shut it."

Beneath the small makeshift base at the center of the deck of the _Hai Peng_, Will was sitting next to Tai Huang, both of them covered in snow and ice, trying to make sense of the navigational charts he had acquired. "Nothing here is set." He observed, turning the panels, "These can't be as accurate as modern charts…"

"No." Tai Huang agreed, "But it leads to more places."

Will turned the panels again, stopping when they lined up to form words. "Over the edge," He read them, "Over again." He turned the panels once again, another message appearing. "Sunrise sets. Flash of Green…?"

He picked up the charts and walked over the stern, handing them to Barbossa, who studied them for a brief moment. "Do you care to interpret, Captain Barbossa?" There was a certain edge to Will's voice as he gave Barbossa that title.

The current captain's lips curled into a smile. "Ever gazed upon the Green Flash, Master Gibbs?" he asked, looking at his adressee.

"I reckon I've seen my fair share." Gibbs replied with a nod.

Pintel and Ragetti moved closer to hear, Jeanne keeping a tight hold on both of them for fear of freezing again. She also knew that this was the start of a story. Gibbs turned around to face the whole group. "Happens on rare occasion. At the last glimpse of sunset, a green flash shoots up into the sky." He paused for a moment, adding suspense to the tale. "Some go their whole lives without ever seeing it. Some claim to have seen it who ain't. And some say—"

"It signals when a soul comes back to this world… from the dead!" Pintel finished for him. Jeanne nudged him as Gibbs shot him a look, clearly disappointed for having his big finish stolen from him. Pintel shrugged apologetically. "Sorry."

Barbossa lowered the map from his face. "Trust me, young Master Turner, it's not getting to the land of the dead that's the problem." He went back to the stern pulling the rudder to adjust the heading, "It's getting back."

The _Hai Peng _was now sailing in between two large ice burgs, their shadows engulfing the entire ship in darkness.

Barbossa ordered for lanterns to be lit, to give them some light as they navigated through the icy waters. From his position at the bow, Will saw Elizabeth still wrapped tightly in her blanket in the dim glow of the lanterns. Seeing this made him sigh.

Jeanne heard the sound and looked up at him. The two of them had been told to attend to the yards and make sure they were all in order. She had worked on several. Will was still on his first one, which was still severely knotted. She followed the trail of his eyes and when they were fixated on his target, her eyes rolled. "Oh, for heaven's sake, Will!" She said through an agitated sigh.

She snatched the rope from his hands, bringing him back down to Earth. "What?" he asked, still somewhat dazed. He blinked in confusion when he saw his adoptive sister sitting on the deck beside him. "Oh, hello. When did you get here, Jeanne?"

Jeanne felt the need to smack herself in the forehead at his question, or maybe to smack him, hardly believing what she had just heard. She held up the rope he had been holding. "Are the words 'tendin' the yards' striking any chords with you?" she asked, imitating the order in Barbossa's scratchy voice.

Will leaned back on the rail above her, running a hand through his dark hair. Jeanne started picking at a knot in the rope. "That's the fifth time I've caught you staring at her." She said without looking at him.

He scoffed, looking down at her with disbelief. "It was not that many times." Jeanne looked up at him, raising her eyebrow. "It wasn't." He tried again.

She continued to stare at him with the same face he had used on her back on Isla Cruces. He sighed, having been defeated. She looked down at the rope, moving onto the next knot in it. "If you still love her so much, tell her instead of looking at her like a lost pup."

"It isn't quite that simple…" He said, folding his arms over his chest as he gazed over at Elizabeth again.

"Of course it is. She is the one that decided to kiss Jack when she was engaged to you." Jeanne said, tossing the straightened rope aside and pulling one knee to her chest. "You should be the one to tell her how you feel."

Will looked down at her, just noticing that she was still in the dress and shorts she had been wearing in Singapore. No wonder she had been so cold. Eager to change the subject, he went into his usual scolding mode. "Jeanne, you are going to catch your death of co—"

"Thanks for your concern, but I got used to the cold some moments ago and I've never been sick a day in my life." She cut his lecture off before it even began, looking up at him again out of the corner of her eyes, "Plus, my warmer clothes were on the other ship, which we abandoned in Singapore."

He nodded his head and shrugged, remembering that. "Duly noted."

She went right back to the issue at hand, sighing. "Will, be the adult. At least _try_ to resolve this with her."

He slouched into a sitting position beside her, a humorless smile on his face as he draped. "You do realize that I could say the same thing to you." He nudged her arm with his own. "If I'm not mistaken, you two are barely on speaking terms and don't think I haven't seen those glares you've been sending her."

"I'm not even twenty-five so, for the moment, I do not really consider myself to be an adult. Besides…" She looked down at her shoes, her thoughts wandering to Jack again. "You know the situation is quite different for me…"

* * *

The ship was sailing through warmer waters now, glittering stars adorning the sky overhead. Tia Dalma's musical locket was open, the light notes decorating the atmosphere. Jeanne walked over to where she was sitting, plopping down beneath her with a sigh. Tia Dalma looked down at her, feeling the mixture of emotions swirling around her. "I see many things around you, my child." She began, closing her locket, "But your anger is still the greatest." Jeanne wordlessly leaned her head against Tia Dalma's knee and the bayou woman began stroking her hair. "Is it really worth feelin' when you're not doin' anything about it?" She asked.

The brunette answered her question with one of her own. "What am I _supposed_ to do, Tia Dalma? I assisted her lover. I befriended her. I went so far as to consider her kin. But because of her, I lost someone very important to me. Someone that I… I…"

Tia Dalma frowned. She felt Jeanne's tension growing as she struggled to say out loud what she felt in her heart. Just as it seemed like she was going to, she instead looked up at Tia Dalma with rage-filled eyes. "I swear to you, if Will wasn't still in love with her for heaven knows why, I would—"

"You are strong, Jeanette." Tia Dalma cut her off. "You've spent your whole life fightin' against everything, even yourself, just to make it through the day. But this is one obstacle that cannot be overcome with force." She stood, taking Jeanne's hands and helping her to her feet as well. "Listen well to this. You must learn to face your heart, not fight it, if you're to be gettin' any peace with yourself."

Jeanne grimaced as Tia Dalma turned away, folding her arms over her chest. _What does she mean by that?_ She wondered.

"For what we want most…" She looked up again, seeing Tia Dalma standing between her and Will, speaking to both of them, "There is a cost must be paid in the end…"

Will's eyes fell down to Tia Dalma's necklace and he stared at it for a few moments, having seen one very similar to it aboard the _Flying Dutchman_.

The boat was starting to move faster with every passing second. Will ran across the deck towards the helm. "Barbossa, ahead!"

Barbossa nodded casually, almost as if he had been expecting this. The rest of the crew had come at Will's alarm. "Aye, we're good and lost now." He said with a smug grin.

"Lost?" Elizabeth asked, confused.

"For certain you have to be lost to find the places can't be found, elseways everyone would know where it was." He explained to her.

Gibbs looked over the port side of the ship and down at the water. "We're gaining speed!" he announced.

"Aye." Barbossa said once again.

Will jumped into action. "To stations!" he ordered, he and the crew scrambling to their respective stations, "All hands to stations! Hard to port, gather way!"

"Naaay!" Barbossa cancelled the order, "Belay that! Let her run straight and true!"

The entire crew looked ahead at the water, which was not stretching towards the horizon as the sea usually did. "Blimey!" Pintel exclaimed.

"_Jesucristo…_" Jeanne breathed.

A small wave of fear washed over the crew as they realized they were nearing the edge of the Earth. Elizabeth turned around, storming across the deck to Barbossa. "You've doomed us all!"

"Don't be so unkind. You may not survive to pass this way again, and these be the last friendly words you'll hear." He nearly growled, squeezing Elizabeth's face in one hand.

The ship was moving even faster, the ship nearly upon the top of the waterfall. Tia Dalma was chanting into her crab claws, tossing them onto a crate. "Hard to port!" Elizabeth called.

Will ran to the rudder and adjusted the course, turning the ship so that its side was facing the waterfall. "Hold on!" Will shouted to the entire crew.

Everyone grabbed onto something, holding fast to it. Barbossa cackled as the ship flew over the edge, falling into the nothingness of World's End.

**Hanah: ... (_whoosh..._) They're still not back., but I did notice something. My name is spelled the same forwards and backwards. :) (silence) Please, review! :3**


	5. Full Sparrow Package All Antics Included

**Ana/Ayu/Hanah: Hello, hello, hello!**

**Ana: Welcome to chapter 5!**

**Hanah: But be warned, much emotional conflict lies ahead.**

**Ayu: Yeah, you may want to get a box or two of tissues before reading this.**

**Hanah: (already holding a box) I've got mine already! :)**

**Ana: (holding popcorn) Let's make it happen people!**

**Ayu: Oh, and Ana _still_ doesn't own Pirates. ACK! (gets hit with Ana's popcorn box)**

Chapter 5: The Full Sparrow Package, All Antics Included

After falling for what seemed like an eternity and the _Hai Peng_ having been shattered upon landing in the Locker, the crew stumbled out of the water, spitting out the salty liquid and gasping for air as they trudged onto the shore. The crew struggled to stand as their wet clothes bonded to their skin, their eyes scanning the endlessly sandy area. "So, this is Davy Jones' Locker, no?" Jeanne asked with a shrug of her heavy shoulders, "None too impressive, if you ask me."

Gibbs nodded, squinting in the bright sunlight. "This truly is a God-forsaken place…" He said.

Elizabeth's eyes were searching the land. "I don't see Jack." She said, "I don't see anyone."

"He's here." Barbossa assured the group, walking onto the shore as well with water dripping from the brim of his hat. "Davy Jones never once gave up that what he took."

Will glared at the back of his head. "And does it matter?" He took an accusing tone, his brows seeming to drop lower with every passing second, "We're trapped here by your doing, no different than Jack."

Jack the monkey was crouched beside Tia Dalma with the navigational charts in hand, watching white sand crabs crawl under her skirt. "Witty Jack is closer than you think." She said with a smile, gently petting the crab she held in her hand.

Not long after the priestess told them that, the top of a mast poked out over the sand dunes, rising higher and higher. Then black sails became visible and then a bow. . The _Black Pearl_, atop a wave of sand crabs, was heading their way. Standing on the mast was none other than the rum-soaked mystery of a pirate they were looking for, Captain Jack Sparrow.

The emotions playing across the faces of the crew ranged from happiness to awe while the ship was carried to the shore. "Impossible…" Tai Huang muttered.

Jeanne shook her head. "Not for Jack, it isn't." She said as the corners of her mouth slowly curled upwards, creating the first real smile she had worn in over a month.

As it hit the water, Ragetti slowly pointed a skinny finger at it. "Boat." He was finally able to say.

"Slap me thrice and hand me to me mama, it's Jack." Gibbs rejoiced, running to Jack.

Elizabeth smiled and started to follow him, then the guilt of what she had done to Jack set in once again. She looked at Will, looking away quickly when he turned to look at her.

Jack jumped out of the small life boat and walked, rather wobbled, onto the shore. "A sight for sore eyes!" Gibbs cried as he ran to his captain, "Jack!"

"Mr. Gibbs!" Jack grumbled.

"Aye, Captain?" Gibbs replied enthusiastically.

"I thought as much. I suppose you can account for your actions, then." Jack said gruffly.

Gibbs raised an eyebrow. "Sir?"

Jack was staring his comrade directly in the eye. "There has been a perpetual and virulent lack of discipline aboard my vessel! Why, why is that, sir?!" He demanded with a sharpness very few people knew he possessed.

"Sir, you're—" Gibbs leaned closer, almost whispering, "You're in Davy Jones' Locker, Captain."

Jack went mute, his eyes darting from side to side before resting upon Gibbs once again. "I know that… I know where I am… And don't think I don't!" he added defensively as he quickly turned away.

He stopped suddenly, raising an eyebrow when he saw the crowd before him shifting and bumping into each other. Jeanne shoved her way through the front row of people, her eyes sparkling with delight as she ran to him. "Jack, ya bloomin' idiot!" She jumped the last foot, throwing her arms around his neck in a hug so abrupt that it caused them to spin in a full circle. "I never thought the words would escape my mouth while I'm sober, but I missed you so much!"

Jack's body went rigid as they slowed to a stop, not really knowing what to do. He really must have been losing his mind. The last time he had seen this woman, he recalled, she had been stomping on his feet, yelling at him, and throwing boots at him. She had only hugged him for… Actually, she had stopped hugging him after she turned twelve. He cleared his throat awkwardly. "I missed you, as well…?"

"Jack Sparrow." Barbossa called him with a grin.

Jack's somewhat disturbed face changed in an instant, his lips broadening into a smile. "Ah, Hector." He grabbed Jeanne's wrists and pulled her off of him, setting her off to the side before striding over to Barbossa, "It's been too long, hasn't it?"

"Aye, Isla de Muerta, remember? You shot me." He reminded him.

Jack avoided eye contact with his former first mate for a moment then looked back at him with an innocent grin. "No, I didn't."

His denial was similar to that of a child who had just done something he shouldn't have, and knew it. He looked down the line to see Tia Dalma, taking a few wobbly steps to her. "Tia Dalma! Out and about, eh? You lend an agreeable sense of the macabre to any delirium."

Tia Dalma was puzzled by his words, as was the rest of the crew.

"He thinks we're a hallucination." Will translated.

Jack now took notice of Will, turning his head to him. "William, tell me something." He began, approaching him, "Have you come because you need my help to rescue a certain distressing damsel? Or, rather, a damsel in distress. Either one?"

"No." Will replied with a bit of an edge to his voice.

"Then you wouldn't be here, would you? So you can't be here? Q.E.D., you're not really here!" He ended his string of logical reasoning.

"Jack." Jack looked at Elizabeth at the sound of his name as she stepped forward, "This is real. We're here."

Jack stared at her with a somewhat mortified expression, pointing at her. His mouth opened and closed like he was trying to say something, but no words came out. He quickly walked over to Jeanne, staring at her and then reaching for her chest. His hand was swiftly and smartly smacked away. "Stop that." she snapped.

He was so alarmed at the fact that only the real Jeanne would react that way, his jaw dropped again. He whirled around and sped over to Gibbs and whispered to him, "The Locker, you say?"

"Aye." Gibbs replied.

Jack made a face, letting the gravity of the situation sink in. "We've come to rescue you." Elizabeth said.

"Have you, now?" He asked, turning around to stare her and the crew down as he walked over to them. "That's very kind of you, but seeing as I possess a ship and you don't," He grinned, "It seems as though you're the ones in need of rescuing and I'm not sure as I'm in the mood."

"I see _my _ship." Barbossa said, pointing to the _Black Pearl_, "Right there."

Jack walked in the direction of Barbossa's finger, squinting and shading his eyes with his hand. "Can't spot it. Must be a tiny little thing hiding somewhere behind the _Pearl_."

"Jack." Will stopped the argument he sensed coming, going to stand beside Jack, "Cutler Beckett has the heart of Davy Jones. He controls the _Flying Dutchman_."

"He's taking over the seas." Elizabeth continued, squeezing between the two men.

"And he's executing pirates and innocents alike left and right!" Jeanne cried, swooping in front of him to stop him from going any further.

"The song has already been sung." Tia Dalma concluded the explanation, "The Brethren Court is called."

Jack looked between the serious faces, making a face of his own. "Leave you people alone and look what's happened. Everything's gone to pot!" He said, taking a few steps away from them.

"Aye, Jack," Gibbs readily agreed, "The world needs you back somethin' fierce."

"And you need a crew." Will pointed out.

Jack stopped and slowly turned, facing the group once again, this time with a deadpan expression. "Why should I sail with any of you? Five of you have tried to kill me in the past—"

Jeanne stiffened as the entire crew turned to stare at her, surprised by this—but somehow, not so surprised. "Oh, won't you let that go?" She yelled at Jack, throwing her hands into the air, "I keep telling you, you _tripped_ off the dock that night because you drank too much. I even fell in with you!"

"…Noted." Still, Jack narrowed his eyes at her, pointing two fingers at his eyes then pointing at her, silently telling her he was watching her. "_Four _of you tried to kill me in the past, one of you succeeded."

He had pointed to Elizabeth as he said that. Jeanne glared at her more fiercely than ever before. Will looked at Elizabeth with shock. Jack smirked. "Oh, she's not told you... You'll have loads to talk about while you're here." He turned to Tia Dalma, "As for you…"

"Now," Tia Dalma grinned, reaching up to play with one of the braids in Jack's beard, "Don't tell me you didn't enjoy it at the time?"

Jack grinned as well, "Fair enough. Alright, you're in." He passed her and came to Ragetti, "Don't need you, you scare me." Ragetti looked hurt as Jack continued down the line, "Gibbs, you can come. Marty." He made a grunting noise as he passed Pintel. "Cotton. Cotton's parrot, I'm a little iffy, but at least I'll have someone to talk to." He reached the end of the line and saw Tai Huang and the rest of his Singaporean cohorts. "Who're you?"

"Tai Huang," he introduced himself, nodding his head towards the rest of the men behind him, "These are my men."

"Where do your allegiances lie?"

"With the highest bidder."

Jack grinned. "I have a ship."

Tai Huang mirrored the grin. "That makes you the highest bidder."

"Good man." He nodded his head at him, then turned and started giving orders, "Weigh anchor! All hands, prepare to cast off!"

He nodded to Jeanne and she nodded back, knowing he wanted her to continue from there. She turned to the crew. "Well, you heard the man." She clapped her hands. "To stations!" she bellowed walking to the ship.

Tai Huang's face twisted into a frown upon seeing Jeanne taking charge. It was bad enough that she was quite a few years younger than him, but the fact that she was a woman is what really got under his skin. Sneering at her as she passed him by, he made his way up to the _Pearl_.

Jack flipped open his compass, intent on finding his new heading, which was currently a way out. He frowned as he saw the needle spinning around and around, showing no signs of stopping. He closed it again with a face that showed mild irritation. "Jack..."

His eyes shifted towards the right and he caught sight of Barbossa with the other outcast members of the crew behind him, holding the charts he had stolen in Singapore. "Which way are ya going Jack?" he asked with a sly smile.

Jack was silent, his face twitching with defeat.

* * *

Once everybody was aboard the _Pearl_, they went to their respective stations and post. For the most part, things were going smoothly. That is, until the two captains on board decided that they would both be giving the orders.

"Trim that sail" Barbossa shouted.

"Trim that sail!" Jack repeated the order.

"Slack windward brace and sheet!"

"Slack windward brace and sheet!" Jack mimicked him again.

This went on for a few moments longer, until Barbossa finally stopped and grabbed Jack's shoulder, stopping him as well. "What _are_ you doing?" he asked, exasperated.

"What are _you_ doing?" Jack asked in response.

"No, what _are_ you doing?"

Jeanne was wearing pants and boots again coupled this time with a tight, strapless blue shirt that cut off above her navel and a long leather coat, much like Jack's—someone once told her that coats suited her. She was pushing a barrel across the deck when she caught sight of the two men quarreling. She was so bewildered by the sight of grown men arguing like children that it made her stop and stare. It was times like these in which she wondered if she was really the youngest member of this crew.

"What are_ you_ doing?" Jack asked again.

"No, what _are _you doing?" Barbossa was starting to get testy.

Jeanne set the barrel upright and then raised an eyebrow at the two of them. "Alright, _what _are you doing?" she finally asked, making her presence known at last.

They took a short glance at her, Barbossa doing a double take as he wondered where this woman kept getting all these clothes. Jack frowned, turning back to Barbossa. "Captain gives orders on the ship!" he said.

"The captain of the ship _is _giving orders!" Barbossa retorted.

Jack's frown deepened and Jeanne's eyebrow went up a little higher. "My ship, makes me captain."

Barbossa held up the charts he had gotten from Sao Fang to enhance his argument. "They be my charts!"

"That makes you… Chart man!"

Jeanne nodded her head, clicking her tongue. "For once, I agree with Jack." She threw her hands up in front of her when Jack looked at her cheerfully. "Though, not on the chart man bit." His face fell and she rolled her eyes. "However, I do believe it was Jack who made the deal with the devil for the _Pearl_, here-go making it his ship." She said, planting her hands on her hips as she looked at Barbossa, "Wouldn't you agree?"

Jack grinned, pointing at Jeanne. "She does make an excellent point there, Hector."

Barbossa pursed his lips, his hand gripping the charts tightly. "I'll not be listening to the ramblings of a mere child!" he said, glaring at Jeanne. "And a female, no less!"

Jeanne's hazel eyes flared and she rolled up her sleeves while glowering at back Barbossa, taking a couple of dangerous steps towards him. "_I'll_ not be called a child when I could push you both overboard and captain this crate myself! In fact, I think I just might!"

Jack stepped in between the two of them, smiling nonchalantly at Jeanne. "I think we're all in agreement that you're quite the capable woman, dearie. No need to be hasty."

She pointed a strict finger at him, glaring. She was truly getting used to Jack being around again, for she already very, _very _annoyed with him. And it hadn't been an hour yet! "And I'll certainly not be patronized by my sorry excuse for a mentor!"

The dread-locked pirate's usually calm eyes narrowed at her, the smile disappearing. He took a step towards her. "Now, look here, _girl_—"

Pintel happened to see this little three ring circus in progress and decided to give his own input to stop the hostilities. "Stow it!" he shouted, silencing them and calling their attention to him, "The lot of you! That's an order! Understand?"

The three of them went silent and stared at Pintel with appalled eyes.

Had he really just said that to two captains and an aggressive captain-to-be, all of whom could make the rest of this voyage a living nightmare for him. It wasn't until Jeanne's eyebrow arched that the foolish pirate saw the error of his ways and smiled apologetically at the three of them. "Sorry. I just thought with the captain issue in doubt, I'd throw in my name for consideration." He said with a few nervous laughs, before slowly backing away from them, "Sorry…"

A moment of stillness passed and then Barbossa and Jack, attempting to shove each other aside as they went, made their way to the upper deck. Jeanne shook her head with disappointment and pushed the barrel beside her back onto its side with her foot and then started rolling it across the deck again, muttering angrily in French.

Pintel let out a sigh of relief when they all left, going to stand beside Ragetti. The wood-eyed pirate tapped him on the shoulder, grinning. "I'd vote for ya."

[*~*:^:*~*]

The sky had grown dark and cloudy as the _Black Pearl_ sailed onwards and a light fog covered the area. The ship was far from the shore now.

At the ship's bow, the Troublesome Threesome sat, trying to entertain themselves for the time being. Ragetti sat on the rail, swinging his legs as he quietly fished. Pintel was tending to the lines. Jeanne simply examined her nails on one hand and played with her knife in the other.

Ragetti broke the silence and gasped, abruptly letting go of his fishing pole and jumping off of the rail. The other two pirates came to his side instantaneously, looking over the side of the ship with him.

The waves carried a horde of pale humanoid figures, ghosts of the people whose death came at the hands of the sea. "Whoa…" was all Jeanne had to say at the sight.

"Eerie…" Pintel was the next to speak, "That's downright maca-bre."

Jeanne opened her mouth to correct him, and then shut it again with a wave of her hand; it just wasn't worth it with these two.

Ragetti tapped Pintel, "I wonder what would happen if you dropped a cannonball on one of them…" he thought out loud.

Jeanne's eyes went wide and she looked in their direction, prepared to lecture them on respect for the dead, only to see that they were already heading for the lower deck. Probably to get a cannon ball to test Ragetti's inquiry.

She smacked herself in the forehead at their stupidity, and then looked back down into the water, watching the dreary souls as they passed by. There were so many of them, more than likely the work of Cutler Beckett. She frowned at the thought before blowing a kiss at them, as to show them a final bit of kindness before passing on.

Her thoughts were interrupted, however, by a couple of mischievous chuckles from behind her as Pintel and Ragetti shuffled up the steps, each with a cannon ball in hand.

Suddenly, their faces changed and they dropped the cannon balls and let them roll across the deck, staring at the space beside Jeanne.

The brunette nearly screamed when she saw Tia Dalma beside her, glaring at the two of them. She had become rather fond of the bayou woman in recent days, but she could stand to make her presence known a little better.

"Be disrespectful, it would..." Pintel said to Ragetti.

"They should be in the care of Davy Jones." She informed them before looking back out at the water, "That was the duty him was charged with by the goddess, Calypso. To ferry those who die at sea to the other side." She turned back to Pintel and Ragetti. "And every ten years, him could come ashore to be with she who love him. Truly."

Jeanne examined the expression on Tia Dalma's face as she turned back to the water. It looked almost as if she were in some sort of pain.

"But the man has become a monster," Tia Dalma continued.

Ragetti swallowed. "So he wasn't always," he put a hand to his chin and wiggled his fingers, "Tentacle-y?"

Tia Dalma shook her head slowly, a small smile coming to her face. "No… Him was a man once…"

Her fingers delicately went around the locket that hung from her neck. Jeanne's eyebrow went up upon seeing how tenderly she touched the ornament as she spoke. She remembered seeing it open and playing when the two had been talking on the _Hai Peng_. _What is that thing…? _She wondered.

Pintel and Ragetti came to stand beside the two women. Ragetti stared straight ahead, his jaw dropping a bit. "Now there's boats coming." He said.

Sure enough, he was right. A plethora of boats, their paths lit by the small candles in their bows, were floating towards the ship. In these boats were fully fleshed people, looking ahead, saying nothing as they by.

Gibbs walked across the deck, loading a rifle. Will quickly followed after him and grabbed the barrel, pushing it down. "They are not a threat to us." He looked to Tia Dalma for reassurance as Barbossa came to join them, "Am I right?"

"We are nothing but ghosts to them." She replied.

"It's best to just let them be." Barbossa added, staring down at them.

More members of the crew made their way onto the deck, including Elizabeth. Her face lit up when she saw the passenger in one of the boats, a smile dressing her face. "It's my father. We've made it back!" she cried cheerfully, "Father! Father, here! Look here!"

"Elizabeth." Jack said, his face serious for a change, "We're not back."

Jeanne scowled at Elizabeth, and then walked over to the starboard, thinking it had become a bit too crowded on the port side.

She walked to the rail by the bow and pushed herself up to sit on it, looking down at the boats passing her by. It was truly unnerving to see how many people had been dying in light of recent events, especially since they ranged all across the spectrum. Everyone from old men to young girls. Beckett didn't care who got in his way. She brought her hands to her forearms, rubbing them as a light shiver ran up her body. This man would stop at nothing.

Jeanne looked back down into the water, blinking and furrowing her eyebrows when she saw one boat in particular floating just off the starboard bow.

Occupying it was a middle-aged man, brown hair drifting down to his shoulders, tied at the neck by a leather chord. His chin was stubbly, signaling a lack of shaving in recent days. He wore a formal suit, but it was faded and slightly tattered, meaning it was well worn. His dark brown eyes were dull, vacantly staring at the water ahead. But even with that Jeanne recognized the man in an instant. "Dad…" she whispered in disbelief.

Her eyes went wide and she leaned over the side. "Dad!" she called out to the man, waving her arms so that he would be able to see her, "Dad!"

The man blinked quickly at the sound of the voice, which struck him as familiar. He looked up and to his right to see a brunette standing on the deck of the _Black Pearl_. His eyes went wide when he saw her face. He knew that face all too well. "Jeanne…" he breathed, a smile coming onto his face, "Is that you, darling?"

She nodded, her breath catching in her throat; oh, how she had missed the sound of his voice. "Yes. Yes, Dad, it's me… But how can this be…? I thought you were…"

Thomas Monroe shook his head. "I might as well have been without you." He said as he slowly floated by, "I know you must have mixed feelings seeing me like this. But there are some things you must know, and now seems as good a time as any. The night I left you was the worst night of my entire life, but I felt I had no choice but to leave. My life was hanging in the balance."

Jeanne hopped from her perch, following after him, her face alight with confusion. "Left me?"

"You see, I never went to see my employer that night, Jeanne…" Thomas sighed, anger making his dark eyes even darker. "I knew exactly how he planned to tie up his loose ends. So rather than going to him, I hopped on an outbound ship at the south port and left for West Africa. From then on, I lived my life as a buccaneer." He looked down at his hands, "I would have been killed, you see. I did not want my only child to bear the pain of losing her father in such a way." He looked back up at her. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you."

A corner of Jeanne's mouth went up and she turned away from her father with a dry laugh. "He didn't want to hurt me, he says… I'm sorry, he says…" She shook her head. Then, she glared at him. "I've been thinking you were dead for the past six years and all you can say is I'm sorry?"

The candle in the boat reflected the sadness now rapidly pooling in Thomas' eyes. "Jeanne—"

"No!" She cut him off.

From the port side, Jack heard Jeanne's loud shout, calling his attention to her. He saw that she was looking down into the water, talking to someone. Curious as to whether or not she was going mad, he began to make his way over there.

Hot tears of anger were forming at the corners of the woman's eyes. "You could have taken me with you." She snapped. "Why didn't you write to me? Or send for me?" She smacked the bow in her rage. "Give me some bloody sign that you were still alive?"

"I _tried_ to, Jeanne!" He yelled up at her, silencing her before she would have the chance to yell at him again. "I tried to. I wrote to you every day for nearly three months, trying to get you to sail out to Africa. When I failed to get a response, I came back to Tortuga for you, but everyone had told me that you had been gone for well over a year."

A tear rolled down Thomas' cheeks. "I have been looking for you for the past five years. Every time I thought I had you, it turned out that you had already moved on. I was on my way to Singapore, following my latest lead, when my vessel was sent to the depths by East India Company crossfire."

He waited for her to respond, but noted she was in too much shock to, so he continued. "Darling, I've missed you so much that it would ache more and more with each passing day. Only the thought of seeing your face again kept me going. But now, when we've finally found each other again…"

The tears were beginning to cloud Jeanne's vision as she mentally finished the phrase in her mind, her hand going to the golden locket he had given her as a child. _But, now when we've finally found each other again, it's to say goodbye._

Thomas' lips curled upwards and he shook his head in awe; it was plain to see that Jeanne had gotten her smile from him. "Just look at you. Why, you've grown up and become such a beautiful young woman." His smile turned into a smirk and he fished one of her new wanted posters out of his coat pocket. "And you're a damn good pirate from what I've heard. 5000 guineas, eh?" He chuckled. "You're doing so well for yourself, it almost seems as though you have no need for me anymore…"

Her eyes went wide and she froze in place, her hand falling over her heart. It felt as if she had just been run through by a hundred sabers at once. But it was more painful still. His words killed her.

Jack was now standing behind his former protégée, looking down into the water. His eyes narrowed, trying to focus on the figure in one of the boats. His eyes suddenly widened with disbelief and his mouth dropped open. "Tom…?"

Thomas looked up at the sound of his name being called. When he saw Jack Sparrow standing there, his smile broadened and his heart grew lighter. He had not seen his friend in ages and, in some strange way, it eased his mind to see him again in the company of his daughter.

He looked back at his pride and joy, whose shoulders were shaking as she tried to be strong and hold back her tears. She always was a proud little thing. In his eyes, she was the toddler that he left in the arms of Joshamee Gibbs before leaving for other ports. When he blinked, she changed into the seventeen-year-old he had put to bed before leaving Tortuga to escape a grim fate at the hands of his employer. Then, when he blinked again, she changed into the lovely woman that stood just above him as he left her for the last time to enter eternity.

A few fresh tears fell onto his own face when he realized that when he left this time, he was never going to see his beloved daughter again. "Jeanette Marie, I love you so much. Never forget that." he said with a shaking voice, blowing her a kiss. He brought his hand to the brim of his hat as he looked at Jack, nodding his head to him. "Take care of her, will you, Jack?"

Jack's dark eyes seemed to grow darker still and he nodded back in compliance, raising his hand to his own hat in the same manner. It was the least he could do to respect the dying wish of an old friend.

With that, Thomas Monroe turned his eyes forward as his boat inched past the stern.

Jeanne shook her head, mouthing the word no repeatedly. Her voice grew to a whisper. Then to a talking decibel. Then to a shout. "No no no! No! Dad!" She called out to Thomas, but he did not turn back. "I love you, too, Dad! I love you more than anything! And I _do_ need you! I need you now more than ever! Oh, damn it all…"

She leaned her torso over the rail, nearly falling over it as she tried to catch one last glimpse of her father, the tears flowing down her cheeks when she blinked. "Come back to me! I'm begging you, come back!" Hands fell upon her shoulders and tried to pull her back, making her struggle as more tears rushed forward. "Let me go!" She turned back to the water, "Daddy, don't leave me here! I can't survive without you! Daddy, _please_! Daddyyyyy!"

The hands moved to her biceps and jerked her off of the bow and onto the deck, setting her in an upright position.

Jack's hands remained on her arms as he looked down at her, examining her. He pursed his lips at Jeanne's totally defeated expression. Her shoulders sagged and her head hung, and he could not help but notice the tears on her face as he pulled her down. She never cried—her father often joked that she came out of the womb frowning. In fact, she had never once shown any sign of weakness, despite all of the sadness and struggle she had known in her life.

"Come now!" A light laugh escaped his lips as he removed his hands, but it did not carry the usual care-free, Jack-like timbre to it. "Aren't you supposed to be commenting how I just gave you whiplash or something of the sort?"

Normally, he would at least get a smile out of such a comment, mocking his stupidity. She did not look even the slightest bit amused, though, only looking down at the deck beneath her feet. She couldn't make eye contact Jack, for she had no intention of him seeing her even weaker than she must have already appeared.

The captain of the _Black Pearl_ looked past her at Thomas' boat as it shrank into the distance. He reached a hand down and waved it in front of her face. When she didn't move, he sighed and lifted her chin so she was facing him, gazing into her watery hazel eyes. He shook his head. "There's nothing you could have done, love."

New tears rolled down her cheeks as she avoided eye contact. Her shoulders started shaking again and her breaths became quicker. Her hands came from her sides to cover her face as she hung her head, quiet mumbling escaping her through a series of sobs. "Daddy… Come back…" were the only words that could be made out, and they were repeated desperately like some sort of charm that would bring her father back to her. But, to no avail. He was gone.

Jack blinked, somewhat unnerved by the fact that Jeanne was actually crying in front of him. He wasn't quite sure how he was supposed to react to this. Undead pirates, he could handle. Supernatural ships and mythological monsters, he could handle. This? No, this was a totally new experience for him.

"Er…" Falling back on something he very vaguely remembered seeing some loving family do in his travels, he lifted a hand and patted her on the back a couple of times. "There, there?"

Her arms practically jumped around his midsection and he stiffened at the contact. His eyes softened, however, when he felt her fingers gripping his jacket as if her very life depended on it. He let out a heavy sigh, his hand moving up to rest on the top of her head. "Jeanne." He wrapped his other arm around her shoulders and pulled her close as her sobs grew louder and more violent, practically to screaming. He tightened his grip on her, rocking her gently. "Shh… Shh… It's alright… He's in a much better place now…"

On the port side, a similar situation was occurring. Elizabeth was in Will's arms, crying hysterically as Governor Swann passed the ship by. Will held her tight, trying to give her the comfort she so desperately needed after realizing her own father's death. He looked over her shoulder at Tia Dalma. "Is there a way?" he asked her.

The dark woman shook her head slowly. "Him at peace…"

**Ayu: (tearing up) Oh, my God! Ana, you really go all out for this emotional stuff don't you. Ana?**

**Ana: (in her emo corner bawling her eyes out) That! Was! So! Saaaaaaaaaaad! :'(**

**Hanah: (patting her on the back) Um... You kinda wrote it...**

**Ana: Well, yeah... But still! UWAAAAAAH!**

**Ayu: (sniffle) P-please review…**


	6. Love Abounds Where Up Is Down

**Ana: ¡Bienvenidos! Welcome to Chapter 6! Wow, lots of drama in that last bit, huh?**

**Hanah: You can say that again! :(**

**Ayu: That again :D**

**Hanah/Ana: ... Okay**

**Hanah: Let's get the ball rolling, shall we?**

Chapter 6: Love Abounds Where Up Is Down

The fog slowly ebbed out as the _Black Pearl_ sailed on, leaving behind the grim scene. The entire crew was a in an absolute state, more closely related to funeral attendants. The fresh memory of the recent moments hung over their heads like the stars above them, having stopped everything, even time, it seemed.

"Right, then." Barbossa then clapped his hands together loudly, snapping everyone on deck from their daze and bringing all attention to him. "That be enough for one night." He pointed his index finger at the crew. "Night shift, to stations! The rest of ye," He fell into a sweeping bow. "I bid you good night."

The crew stood motionless for a moment, and then one by one they shuffled across the deck to their various destinations. The members that were on the night shift went back to their respective stations and those who were not went below deck.

Will separated himself from Elizabeth, taking a step back from her. Her eyes were fixated on the deck below her feet as she chewed her lip, trying to keep herself from crying more. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and took her by the hand. She flinched a bit at the contact, looking up at him. His lips curved into the faintest of smiles as he gently tugged her towards the steps, silently telling her to follow. Reluctantly, she allowed her feet to move and let Will lead her to the forecastle for the night.

On the starboard, Jack was standing with his arms tightly wound around Jeanne as they had been for the past few minutes, his chin on top of her head and his eyes focused on the dark water beyond the rail. The brunette's fingers gripped his coat so tightly he was sure there would be holes when she released him. She was frozen in place, save for the trace shivers racking her body. She had significantly calmed down from her hysteria and she had completely exhausted her tears, her crying reduced to a quiet, choked sob every now and again.

Jack's turned his head to look over the deck. Other than the crewmen working the night shift and Barbossa, they were the only people on the deck. He sighed a little, turning his attention back to the woman in his arms. After this ordeal, what she really needed, and most definitely deserved, was rest. He shifted a bit in her tight grasp and cleared his throat. "Jeanne?" She made no sound in response, so he shook her shoulder. "Jeanne, you really should be getting to bed…"

He felt her head move a bit and it was his assumption that she was nodding in agreement. She still did not move, though, remaining rooted. She felt so weak, like if she let him go, she would collapse under the weight of her own sorrow. Another sigh escaped the pirate's lips. "Come on, now…"

The next thing Jeanne knew, Jack had hooked his arms under her legs and scooped her up, making her eyes go wide with surprise. Lifting her head, she saw that he was carrying her to the upper deck, her brows furrowing as he opened the door to the captain's cabin, the place he was usually trying his best to keep her out of. Shutting the door with his foot, he walked across the room to the window cushion on which she usually favored and gently set her upon it. He stared down at her as she pulled her knees to her chest, looking out the window. An unusually thick silence hung between them. Then again, what could be said after that?

Jeanne let out that breath she had been holding for a while, shaking her head with disbelief. "I can't believe he was alive…" she whispered to herself, running her hands through her hair. She then looked up at Jack, her sad hazel eyes swollen. "Jack, can you imagine? All this time, Dad was alive. And he was looking for me…"

Jack's face was solemn and he nodded at her, but a corner of his mouth curled into a half-grin as he leaned against the wall beside her. "Funny how these things work out, eh?" he quipped.

Comments such as that always used bring out a fake smile, or at least a sardonic laugh. Unfortunately, it didn't have much of an effect on the brunette this time, much to his chagrin. She simply curled herself up. "Yeah… funny…" she muttered, turning on her side to hide her face.

Despite this, Jack couldn't help but notice the wayward tear trailing down her cheek. His lips pressed together into a line looking down at her. It was always an understood fact that Jeanne was one of the toughest people he knew, so hard-edged that every man feared being cut by her very presence. Seeing her like this, though, he saw that she was not always as invincible as she made herself out to be.

He crouched beside her and placed a hand atop of her head, gently stroking her hair as to comfort her. Not a moment later, he swiftly moved his hand away, wondering why he was even doing this. He wasn't a wanted man because of his compassion. He heaved a heavy sigh, shaking his head. "Get some rest, love." He advised her, ruffling her hair. He rose to his feet and turned away from her, about to make his way towards the door. "You've had quite the ordeal tonight…"

Jeanne sat up abruptly and turned in her seat, her eyes meeting with his back as he began to walk away. She had just lost her father, the most important man in her life, a second time. As she watched Jack turn to the door, a sudden panic rose up in her; she didn't want him to leave. In an instant, Tia Dalma's words came back to her. _"You must learn to face your heart, not fight it, if you're to be gettin' any peace with yourself."_

She bit her lip and took a deep breath, figuring now was as good a time to act as any. "Jack!" she called, suddenly grabbing his hand and tugging him back.

Jack stopped in his tracks, his head angling as he turned back around to look at her. "Aye?"

"I…" She went silent after that. As soon as she locked eyes with him, her gaze dropped to the floor, but not as quickly as her sudden surge of confidence. She still couldn't say it. "Don't go… At least not until I'm asleep…" she added the last bit quickly.

He stared at her oddly, an eyebrow rose in question. He was completely intent on walking out that door so he could down some rum and clear his head. But her request stirred up something, making some part of him want to stay. After a moment of pondering and debating, the lesser part won. It was the least he could do, he figured. For Thomas' sake.

He sat down in the space that wasn't occupied by her body, moving his hand so that his fingers were laced with hers. He offered her a faint smile, nodding. "I suppose I could stay awhile."

* * *

Later, Jack found himself looking at the sea outside the window, deep in thought with Jeanne curled up beside him. She had fallen asleep hours ago, and yet he was still there, his hand still closed around hers. He was still having a hard time swallowing all that had transpired earlier. Thomas Monroe, and one of his few true friends and the father of his former protégée, had just sailed past the_ Black Pearl_ with the recently departed souls of their world. Like most other people, he had thought the man to be long since dead. To see him under the current circumstances had left Jack absolutely speechless. Even more shocking, with his last words, Thomas had basically given his daughter away.

That was another thing that left him at a loss; what was he supposed to do about that? He couldn't take care of her, given the current war going on. He could barely keep himself out of trouble. Plus, since she had gotten back into his life, things suddenly started getting complicated between them. In the past, the two of them had always had an established relationship. Mentor and protégée; captain and crewman; "drunken idiot" and "loud-mouthed wench"; an unusual friendship, but a manageable one. However, it would be a lie to say that was all he thought of her.

The pirate had been around plenty of women, all of which said what needed to be said to get in his good graces and bent to his whims and fancies without protest, and in most cases he easily pleased them. Maybe that was what made Jeanne such an intrigue to him. It was very rare for her to listen to him without questioning his judgment. She was boyish and ill-tempered, not one to be swayed by pretty words and never really pleased with anything. She was also blatantly honest with him, sometimes to the point where it seemed almost cruel, but it was always what he needed to hear.

Despite the fact that she was usually a disagreeable person, there was one thing he had noticed. Most of his memories of Tortuga included her. If he felt like telling a sea tale, she was guaranteed to listen. If he needed a place to hide when Scarlet, Giselle or any other jaded woman was on the warpath, she'd sneak him through the back alleyways to her house and though she complained about it, she would let him stay for days on end if he needed to. If he came to the Faithful Bride, no matter how busy it was she would take the time to talk to him, even if it was just to tell him to buy something or leave; but she would still grab a whole crate of rum and join him when he wanted to drink from dusk till dawn, even sharing the hangover the next morning. When he left Tortuga, she would be the last one to leave the dock. And when he returned, she was always at the front of the pier.

In actuality, he couldn't recall a time since they met when she wasn't with him.

The pirate took his gaze from the window, looking down at the woman sleeping soundly beside him. She looked so peaceful when she was asleep and wasn't swearing like a sailor or scrapping with the crewmen. The swollen eyes and the lightly pinked nose were small signs of how the warm heart she tried so hard to hide was breaking. For once in her life, she seemed almost feminine. His face then became thoughtful, his eyes narrowing. An unfamiliar… feeling was beginning to nag at him, tearing at his chest and churning his stomach; and it just refused to leave him be.

Jack sighed quietly, slowly and carefully freeing his hand from Jeanne's. He gazed at her for a moment, reaching a hand down towards her face. It seemed, yet again, to have matured a bit in light of recent events. He lightly brushed her cheek with the backs of his fingers before cradling it in his hand. She seemed to acknowledge his presence, leaning her face into his palm in her sleep.

He had not even realized that he had been leaning closer to her until her breath wafted over his lips lightly as she stirred. He froze on the spot, his heart going on overdrive for a second. He let out another sigh, though, this one of relief, when her head lolled out of his hand and to the side, her sleep going uninterrupted.

He hummed thoughtfully as he rose to his feet and quietly made his way out the door. As he prepared to leave he turned to glance back at her again, shaking his head and exiting the room. Outside, he leaned his back against the door, bringing his hand to his chin thoughtfully. Why on earth was he even thinking about these things?

[*~*:^:*~*]

The next day was a blazing hot one, a stark contrast from the cool night before. On top of that, they had been trapped in doldrums for quite a few hours and the sun's rays scorched them, even as it began to sink into the distant horizon. It almost made them want to go back to the arctic chill they had been in before. Everyone was in different positions across the deck, letting out ragged breaths as they tried to cool themselves off. Elizabeth was sitting on the small staircase between the upper and lower deck, noticeably depressed over the events over the events of the night before. On the lower deck, Jeanne was laying on her back, staring up at the empty sky and licking her dry lips, wishing for a drop of rain or a tiny lick of wind. "So thirsty…" she groaned turning her head to her right.

A couple of feet in that general direction, Pintel and Gibbs sat back-to-back, sweat beading their foreheads. Pintel held a flask above his open mouth, shaking it in an attempt to draw something out of it. He only got a minuscule drop. "No water…" he murmured, trying again only to get more of the same, "Why is all but the rum gone?"

Gibbs was trying to coax some liquid out of a glass bottle of rum, speaking as he did so. "Rum's gone, too…" he said gruffly.

Upon hearing that, Jeanne's eyes went wide and she sat bolt upright, letting out a shrill scream, nearly giving Elizabeth, as well as the rest of the crew, a heart attack as they all turned to look at her. They watched as she suddenly collapsed messily on the deck, looking as though she had just been murdered, a slight twitch in her fingertips. Elizabeth could not help but smile at this. _That's one pirate who loves her rum._

Will looked up at the sound stared longingly at Elizabeth from the port bow, letting out a sigh as he turned his attention to the sea. Tia Dalma was soon beside him, staring out at the sun at the end of the horizon, her face solemn. "If we cannot escape these doldrums by nightfall, I fear we will sail trackless seas. Doomed to roam the reach between worlds… forever."

Gibbs rose to his feet, walking to stand by her. "With no water—" he began.

Jeanne sat up. "Or rum…" she called before collapsing again.

He nodded quickly in agreement with her. "Aye. With no water or rum, forever seems to be arriving a mite too soon."

Will had moved from his previous position and was now standing at the center of the deck, scowling up at the helm where Barbossa was standing. "Why doesn't he do something?" he demanded of nobody in particular.

Jeanne rolled to her feet, walking across the deck with Will, Gibbs joining almost immediately after. "What is there _to_ do?" the piratesse asked with a shrug of her shoulders.

Gibbs shook his head as they walked. "There's no sense to it."

"And the green flash happens at sunset." Will came to a stop, turning to face his two companions a Ragetti scrambled across the deck after monkey Jack, "Not sunrise."

"_Over the edge…_" Jeanne repeated before she let out a frustrated growl, running a hand through her hair.

Gibbs followed suit with a groan of his own. "It's driving me over the bloomin' edge!" He griped. "Sunrises don't set."

In the meantime, Jack was sitting in the center of the deck, fiddling with the navigational charts, trying to get them to match up in some way, shape or form. Jeanne strode over to him, kneeling down beside him to see him form new words. "_Up is… down_…?" she read, her voice rising in question.

"Well, that's just maddeningly unhelpful." Jack wrinkled his nose at the words, not lifting his eyes to meet hers. "Why are these things never clear?"

"Because if they were, everyone would know the routes to all the world's treasures, making piracy a pointless endeavor." she said matter of factly.

Jack flinched somewhere in the middle of her comment, looking to his left. "What was that? Eh?"

Jeanne looked at him, raising an eyebrow. She had been perfectly clear and had given a legitimate answer. "Um… That if they were—"

He suddenly looked to his right. "Come again?"

"Piracy would be a pointless endeavor." She repeated through an agitated sigh.

"Well, that's even more than less than unhelpful…"

Her eyebrow ticked a little and she sucked her teeth. "Well, you're the one who asked!"

His head tilted to the side slightly and he lifted one corner of his mouth in his signature smile. "I love the sea." He said, his comment having nothing whatsoever to do with the issue at hand.

Jeanne's hazel eyes narrowed into slits, showing her irritation, but she managed to push forth a smile regardless; maybe he was just playing a game. It wouldn't be the first time. However, she couldn't help feeling as though there was a whole other conversation going on and she wasn't included. "It's a requirement for we pirates, no?"

"I prefer rum." came yet another off-handed comment with a sharp nod. "Rum's good."

"Aye, absolutely!" Her face quickly lit up at that.

"Once every ten years."

And it went pale just as quickly. "That's… That's madness… That's the equivalent of forever!"

Jack seemed to agree with her, his face dropping significantly. "Even longer given the deficit of rum."

"For a second, I thought you were…"

Another smile brightened his face. "Oh, I like that."

"Truly insane." She finished with a sigh, now looking out at the horizon again. "Looks like we will be here forever. Sunset's almost here…"

Jack followed her gaze, looking contemplatively out at the water. His eyebrows raised quickly, as though he had been struck by inspiration. "Not sunset…" he murmured. Jeanne swiftly turned to see him turn the center of the charts, putting the boat upside-down. "Sundown." He surmised as he did so. "And rise up!"

He rose to his feet as he said the last word, startling her and turning to the starboard and pointing. "What's that?" he asked, running over there.

Jeanne looked at Gibbs and Will, sharing a confused glance with them before they all went to see what Jack was seeing. Once they got over there, though, they saw nothing. They scrutinized the scenery, searching for something unusual. "What _is _that?" Jack asked again. Then he looked confused again. "I don't know?" He turned to his left. "What do you think?"

Gibbs' eyes narrowed with suspicious curiosity as he tried to find out what his captain was seeing. "Where?"

"There!"

Barbossa was also starting to get curious, moving out of his statuesque pose, towards the lower deck. Jack suddenly made a light whimpering noise and ran to the port side, bringing Jeanne, Will and Gibbs and a few more crew members in tow. Even Tia Dalma was intrigued by this odd pattern of behavior and went to look herself.

Jack made a series of incoherent noises and then pushed himself off of the rail, running back to the starboard again. Elizabeth looked up at this time, staring blankly at the crew as they passed her by. Again, Jack made a strange noise and then dashed back to the other side; most of the crew hadn't even touched the rail before he changed directions again.

Elizabeth was up now, standing beside Jack and trying to look where he was looking. "What is it?"

With a noise synonymous to that of a bird, Jack changed directions yet again, taking everyone with him. Jeanne hopped over small box as it slid beneath her feet, nearly cursing it before a thought came to her: Hadn't that item just been stationary just a moment ago?

She noted how the end of the ship she was going for was slowly rising up, falling once she and the crew members started to go the other way. Her eyes widened and she smiled a little bit. "Wait a second…"

"He's rockin' the ship…" she heard Pintel say, his voice laced with disbelief.

She then turned to Gibbs, exchanging a glance of joy with him. "We're rocking the ship!" they cried together, becoming more enthusiastic in their running.

Barbossa was on his hands and knees, looking down at the charts. When he saw what Jack had created with them, he grinned, looking around at the crew as they ran. "Aye, he's onto it!"

"He's rockin' the ship!" Pintel said again.

Ragetti appeared next to him with ropes draped over his shoulder, a mischievous grin on his face. "We'll tie each other to the mast upside-down so when the boat flips, we'll be the right way up!"

Jeanne heard the comment made by her cohort and Pintel's laugh and shook her head. "You two." She said as she passed them once. "Are absolute." She continued as she passed them again. "Morons."

"Time it with the swell!" Barbossa advised them before running below deck. "Loose the cannons you stinkin' bilge rats!" His orders were heard clearly on the main deck. "Unstow the cargo! Let it shift!"

The order was obviously followed quickly. The _Black Pearl_ was starting to go into grander movements, each becoming larger than the next. Barbossa came up and immediately fell into step with the rest of the crew. They ran to one side and, once it was as tilted as it could possibly be, they would run back to the other side, repeating this process over again. Unfortunately, they lost a crewman in the process. Somehow in the midst of all this, Pintel and Ragetti were actually able to carry out their plan and were hanging upside-down, watching everyone go by.

The crew ran one final time to the port side, the ship tilting along with them. Their hands tightened on the rail as the deck shifted from beneath their feet, leaving them dangling there. Another crewman lost his grip and fell, a cannon following after him and crushing him completely. Everyone winced at the sound of his cracking bones.

The _Pearl_, slowly but surely was turning over, bringing the crew closer to the briny water. "Now, up…" Jack said as the starboard was engulfed by the sea, "…is down."

With a loud roar, they were all taken underneath the water. Will lost his grip once they were below the surface. Elizabeth attempted to reach out to him, missing him by a hair. Jeanne let out a silent shriek when she saw her brother sinking, slowly shifting into relief when she saw him grab onto one of the lines connected to the mast.

They all looked around in awe at the scene they now found themselves in. The salty water, surprisingly did not burn their eyes, giving them a perfect view of everything around them. Ragetti and Pintel were thinking themselves clever for being right-side-up to see all of this. Not that there was really much to see.

Or so they thought.

As the sun completely disappeared into the horizon, a bright green flash lit up the water. Jack tilted his head as foamy bubbles rushed up at them from below. Somehow the ship seemed to be rising, which shouldn't have been possible. Then again, turning the ship upside-down shouldn't have been possible either. The movement became more drastic; the sails seemed to be disappearing into the bubbles.

Another loud roar filled their ears and in the next instant, everyone fell onto the deck, water wafting over their backs as they rolled off of the deck. Jeanne had landed beside the mast, using that to pull herself to her feet again. She hacked up some sea water, and then shrieked when another spurt of water was sprayed out beside her. She laughed out loud when she saw Pintel and Ragetti tied upside-down beside her, making no attempt to hide it and even going so far as to point. "This was _your_ idea." Pintel complained to Ragetti.

Jeanne lifted a hand to push her wet bangs from her eyes as she walked towards the center of the deck, completely mesmerized. The scenery looked exactly the same, but it felt completely different. It felt right. "_Mon Deiu…_" she breathed.

"Blessed sweet westerlies!" Gibbs said as he jumped to his feet, his eyes wide with wonder. "We're back!"

Almost everyone was up now, looking around as if to make sure they weren't all dreaming this after those two hellish days in the locker. Elizabeth was facing the east. "It's the sunrise."

For a moment, everyone was captivated by the sun rising over the horizon, casting its golden rays and filling them with a pleasant warmth. It lightened the mood so much. Literally. Even Barbossa seemed to be in higher spirits.

Suddenly, he whipped out a pistol, aiming it at Jack. Gibbs and Jeanne immediately had guns pointed at Barbossa, both of them ready to defend their captain. Jeanne's second pistol was at Elizabeth's head. Jack pointed one of his pistols at Will, who then pointed his spare one at him. Jack's second pistol was aimed at Elizabeth, who had her other pistol on Barbossa. They all stood still, scowls on their faces as they stared each other down. Even little monkey Jack had a pistol pointed at Cotton's parrot. "Parlay?" the bird squawked.

A laugh from Barbossa cut the silence, the sound completely unexpected. Jeanne's melodious giggle blended with the sound and she lowered her pistols, immediately followed by Jack. Soon, the entire group of armed pirates was in a casual laughing fit, greatly confusing the other crew members.

"Alright then!" Barbossa shouted. Immediately, the smiles were dropped and the pistols were up again. His gaze cut to Jack, grey eyes narrowed. "The Brethren Court's a-gathering at Shipwreck Cove. And Jack, you and I are a-goin' and there'll be no arguin' that point."

"I is arguing the point." Jack protested, nodding his head to the side. "If there's pirates a-gathering, I'm pointing my ship the other way."

Elizabeth had both pistols on Jack now, Jack following suit with his own pistols. "The pirates are gathering to fight Beckett and you're a pirate."

Jeanne had both of her pistols pointed at her. "If you expect him to fight, it would be best if you didn't blow his head off, dearie." she snapped, putting one of Elizabeth's pistols on her..

"Fight or not," Will cut in, bringing both pistols to Jack, and bringing one of Jack's on himself, "You're not running, Jack."

Barbossa spoke up again. "If we don't stand together, they'll hunt us down one by one till there be none left," He nodded at Jack, "But you."

"I quite like the sound of that." Jack mused, smiling at the thought. "Jack Sparrow, the last pirate."

"Really? I don't."

A click sounded off by Jack's head and he noticed everyone's shocked gaze had moved beside him. He slowly turned to end up staring down the barrel of one of Jeanne's pistols. She raised an eyebrow at him. "That's so like you, Jack, to turn chicken and run." she said, shaking her head. All you'll really be doing is bringing more hell-fire upon yourself, so why bother trying?"

"Aye." Barbossa agreed, moving closer to Jack and pointing a pistol at Gibbs under his arm. "And you'll be fightin' Jones alone. And how does that figure into your plan?"

"Yes, Jack." Jeanne smirked, "How _does_ that fit into your _brilliant_ little plan?"

He looked at her, scrunching up his face a little bit. "I'm still working on that." He quickly turned to Barbossa, his finger on the trigger. "But I'll not be going back to the Locker, mate. Count on that."

The trigger was pulled, but no shot was fired. Shocked by this, Barbossa tried his own pistol on Jeanne, who tried hers on Elizabeth. This set off a series of failed attempts to blast each other's heads off, only loud clicks. Gibbs groaned as he looked down at his own pistol, figuring out the problem with the others. "Wet powder."

"Damn!" Jeanne swore, tossing her pistols to the ground.

The circle broke up just as Pintel and Ragetti got themselves untied and ready for the fight. "Wait!" Pintel called after them. "We can still use 'em as clubs!" Ragetti stared down at his pistol before turning to Pintel, smacking him over the head with it. "Ow!"

"Sorry." The taller pirate apologized, looking down at the weapon. "Effective, though."

A bit later, the crew was gathered around Will as he unfolded the navigational charts. He motioned to a certain point on the map. "There's a freshwater spring on this island. We can resupply there," he looked at Jack and Barbossa on either side of him, "Get back to shooting each other later."

Jeanne, who was leaning lazily on his back with her chin atop his head, nodded at that. "Sounds good to me."

Jack glanced over at Barbossa. "You can lead the shore party, and I'll stay with my ship."

Barbossa leered at him out of the corners of his eyes. "I'll not be leaving _my_ ship in your command."

"Seeing as neither one of you is going to budge an inch, leave it in my command as a tie-breaker," Jeanne said, rolling her eyes.

Both Barbossa and Jack let out a scoff at this, almost chuckling, earning a nasty glare from Jeanne. Will rolled his eyes, taking this time to stop the argument he knew was coming. "Why don't you _all _go ashore and leave the ship in my command." The three squabbling captain-figures all looked at him with quirked eyebrows. "Temporarily." He quickly added, looking back down at the map.

Barbossa's eyes narrowed on Will. If he was unwilling to let Jack be in command of the _Black Pearl_, just what made Will think that he could be in charge of it? Jack also looked rather unsettled about the proposed idea, seeing as he had only just gotten his ship back.

His eyes zipped around as he searched for a way to get over this stumbling rock. His eyes then fell upon Jeanne and a grin suddenly spread over his face. He cleared his throat, bringing Barbossa's attention to him. "What say you to this, Hector?" He waved his fingers between the two of them. "You and I will both lead the party ashore and leave the _Black Pearl _in Will's hands…" He pointed at the pirate draped over Will's back, much to her surprise, "With Jeanne staying to keep her ever-so-watchful eye on him. Seems like a pretty good deal, eh?"

Now Barbossa's grey eyes were upon Jeanne, only seeming to narrow further. He was not particularly fond of the brunette because of her sarcastic sense of humor, occasional Jack-like tendencies and poisoned tongue. However, he would be made a liar to say that he did not respect the strict, captain-like authority she seemed to carry herself with. As much as it wounded him to admit it, Jack had come up with a decent idea.

"What say I?" He nodded his head at Jack. "I say aye."

Jack rose to his feet, the expression on his face showing that he was clearly pleased. "You shan't be disappointed, Hector." He patted her on the head, "I assure you she is more than capable to handle this endeavor."

Jeanne smiled brightly at what was probably the first time Jack had complimented her in a very long time. "Why, thank you."

He then gave her a light smack upside the head with the palm of his hand, grinning. "Step to it, wench."

Then the smile disappeared and she huffed, giving him a punch on the arm. "Just lead the shore party, you infuriating idiot." she snapped, standing to face the crew. "Alright, men! Drop anchor and ready the longboats for departure!"

**Ayu: Ha! I bet you guys didn't see that one coming!**

**Ana: I didn't even see it coming! O.o**

**Hanah: ... Didn't you write it?**

**Ana: (looks around shiftily) What's your point? -.-**

**Ayu: SHUSH! (smiles) Anyway, looks like there's two twisted relationships on this ship. I wonder what their fates shall be... (looks at Ana) Seriously. What's gonna happen? Tell me!**

**Ana: Never! xD (looks at audience) Read and Review, por favor :3**


	7. Schemers and Tricksters and Liars, Oh My

**Hanah: (singing)Hello...**

**Ayu: (harmonizing)Hello...**

**Ana: (harmonizing)Hello!**

**Ana/Ayu/Hanah: Hi there everybody!**

**Hanah: We're just warming up before we take our act to the city.**

**Ayu: Wish us luck!**

**Ana: Nuuuu, that's bad luck! Tell us to break a leg! And while you do so, enjoy this chapter! :3**

**Hanah: I know I did :D Oh, and Ana still doesn't own Pirates.**

**Ana: BUT I WILL ONE DAY!**

Chapter 7: Schemers and Tricksters and Liars, Oh My!

Jeanne strode around the deck, pointing things out to the crew and helping them prepare the longboats for departure. The crew, for the most part, followed her orders without question because to those who didn't already see her as a figure of authority, arguing with her would be a losing game. As far as they had seen, she always won. Plus, it was Jack who had appointed her and none of them were fool-hardy enough to try to argue with Jack.

As she neared the port bow, she saw Barbossa looking out at the distant island with his spyglass. She raised an eyebrow when she saw Jack move to stand beside him. She immediately had to cover her mouth to reign in her laughter as Jack opened his own spyglass to a length far exceeding Barbossa's. She shook her head, allowing a tiny giggle to slip through.

Tai Huang, who just happened to be making his way to the long boats at that time, heard the sound and came to a halt behind her. His eyes narrowed and he cleared his throat. Jeanne whirled around to see him giving her a scathing evil eye. "Is there a problem, young miss?" he asked her with an obviously forced grin, practically biting the words at her.

She narrowed her eyes at him, folding her arms over her chest with a sassy smile of her own. "Of course not, Master Huang." She replied in an unusually sweet tone, patting him on the shoulder. "But I do appreciate your concern." Her smile went away then and she turned on her heel to walk away, jabbing a thumb over her shoulder. "Now back to your post, sailor."

Will had just tied off one of the lines at the starboard, pulling it tight, and was making his way across the deck. He stopped cold when he saw Tai Huang grab Jeanne firmly by the arm, stopping her in her tracks. Neither one of them looked pleased with the other and the woman's hand was inching closer to her sword. He quickly began to make his way over there to make sure things didn't escalate too far.

Jeanne winced when she felt Tai Huang's hand clamp down over her arm. She reached for her sword when she felt his grip tighten, turning to glare at him. "You will not always have Sparrow around to defend you," He hissed, meeting her glare with one of his own, "So you had better watch yourself, _little girl_."

"I can assure you, I'm more than capable of defending myself." she said, slowly pulling Delilah from her sheath with her frown deepening, "Do I have to draw this sword, or was Singapore not enough of a demonstration for you?"

"Shore party!" Barbossa shouted, bringing both of their attention to him as he made his way across the deck with several crew members in tow. "Make ready to depart!"

Tai Huang swiftly released her arm and shoved her backwards. As she threw her arms out to the side to try and steady herself, she fell into someone's arms. She tilted her head back to see that Will was the one who caught her. Tai Huang sneered at her as he stalked towards the longboats. "Next time, little girl."

"Oh, count on it." she said, biting her thumb at him.

Will let out a heavy sigh and shook his head; he had a feeling that Jeanne and her constant acid-spitting was the cause of the scuffle. He set her on her feet again and looked her over, noting how she rubbed her arm, which was probably bruised. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." She gave a quick nod, watching the longboats disappear beneath the bow and into the water before she and Will resumed their duties as watchdogs. "But he won't be if he tries that again…"

* * *

With the shore party gone, it left Jeanne, Will, Elizabeth, Gibbs, Tia Dalma, and some of Tai Huang's men to watch the ship. It was really quiet because there was nothing to do. The cannons were secured in their proper positions. Inventory of the cargo was made and stowed away. The anchor was dropped, the sails were closed and there was no need to swab the deck. Their re-entry into the world of the living had taken care of that. Shrugging, Will and Jeanne decided that this would be a good window of opportunity to relax a bit and so, they suspended duties for the day.

Jeanne stood on the rail with her hands tightly gripping a rope web, Will leaning over the bow beside her. Her eyes were closed as she basked in the cool breeze that swept over them, loving the feeling of the salty wind through her hair. She took a deep breath of it. "Oh, Will…" she sighed, "Isn't this great?" She heard no response from him and opened her eyes, looking down at him. "Will?

Will said nothing, only looking out at the water. Since the shore party left, that's all he had been doing. He had not even scolded her about her rather precarious perch. It was very suspicious indeed. Jeanne clicked her tongue at this. She hadn't known him long, but she'd known him long enough to see that he only ignored her when there was something weighing heavily on his mind.

"William!" she called. He responded only by looking at her out of the corner of his eye. "Alright, what are you looking for?"

This brought his full attention to her, an eyebrow raised and a smile of mild amusement playing across his face. "Nothing. Whatever would give you that idea?" he asked, laughter lacing with his words.

She pursed her lips as he returned his gaze to the sea, releasing her grip on the web and moving her hands to her hips. "People never look to the empty sea without a purpose."

She looked out in the direction that he was looking in. She caught sight of a large figure that looked almost like a ship, not too far off from the _Black Pearl_, that seemed to get closer to them the longer she looked at it. She turned to question Will on it, only to see him standing upright and extending his arms to her. "Come with me a moment, won't you?"

Jeanne blinked at him, an eyebrow slowly arching up. "Why…?" she asked cautiously.

His smile only seemed to grow broader. "I have a surprise for you." She reached down to grasp his shoulders and he swung her down to the deck with him, walking across it towards the steps leading below deck. "It's one I think you'll like."

She followed close behind him with her arms folded over her chest. "I've never been one for surprises." she informed him, right on his heels as he descended the steps. "What is it?"

Will grabbed a key hanging from a hook by the steps and then proceeded to the area behind them. Jeanne crouched on the steps and looked through the cracks, watching as Will put the key through the keyhole of a small pantry. "I managed to find a bottle of rum down here." He told her over the quiet clicking of the lock. "I figured you might—"

"Move over, it's mine!"

Jeanne was immediately beside him, her hazel eyes sparkling with delight. It had been well over a week since she had last had even a drop of rum and she was just dying to have some. When the pantry was pulled open, however, she only saw a bare minimum of things in it; a couple of loaves of stale bread and a wheel of old cheese. She leaned in to get a better look. "Wait. I don't see any—"

Her words were cut off when she was suddenly shoved into the pantry, the door slamming shut behind her. She let out a gasp of alarm when she turned to see that there was no doorknob on the inside of the pantry. Not that it would have mattered. She heard a click echo through the small space, meaning that she was locked in with only a sliver of light from beneath the door. All of the joy of before left her eyes, swiftly replaced by malice. "William Turner!" she roared, raising her fists to pound on the door. "I'll gut you like a fish, you rotten little blighter!"

Will was hanging the key back on its hook, watching as the door shook with every blow the woman dealt to it. He had to admit, she was quite strong for her size; the door was actually bending a little. And cracking. "Let me out right now!"

"Sorry, Jeanne," he called to her through the cracks as he walked back up the stairs. "But this is for your own good!"

"There is no possible way that this is for my own good!" He heard her scream in protest as she rammed against the door harder. "Let." _Slam!_ "Me." _Wham!_ "Out!"

She recoiled a little from the force of the hit, the shelves digging into her back as she fell into them. She put hand over her arm, rubbing it to alleviate the stinging pain. If Tai Huang hadn't bruised her, this surely would. She looked around at the small space she was in, which was made even smaller by her being in there. There was hardly enough room for her to move her limbs, which meant she couldn't use her signature kick to break the door down or draw Delilah. A growl rumbled from her throat at this prospect and she stomped her foot. "Damn you, Will…" she swore.

But this was not the time, Jeanne realized, to be cursing Will. Loud, quick footsteps and shouts were heard overhead, shaking dust from the ceiling onto her head with every pounding movement. Above all of this chaos, she could clearly hear one voice. "Search the ship!" he ordered. "If you find any cowardly bilge rats bring them out!"

Sao Feng.

This only proved to her that her suspicions, as per the usual, were right. That ship she had seen coming closer to them was definitely not on their side. And apparently, neither was Will. All the more reason for her to get back to finding a way out of the bloody pantry. Suddenly, it hit her. _Knife!_

She smacked her forehead, for once, at her own stupidity. It wasn't Delilah, but it would do the trick. She raised her leg a little and dipped her fingers into her boot, fishing out one of her knives. She stabbed the blade into the small keyhole as hard as she could, pushing it straight through to the other side. A smirk danced across her face and she giggled, pulling the knife out and letting the dismantled keyhole fall out.

As soon as she heard the light ping of the keyhole hitting the floor, she took a small step back. With one sharp, quick ram to the door, she was flying out of the pantry… right into two burly Cantonese pirates who were _definitely _not a part of her crew. She was in her stance now, ready to scrap as always, a simple cock of her head telling them to bring it on. One lunged at her and she flew into the air, extending her leg for a roundhouse kick. "Hiy—Ack!"

The other pirate simply caught her by the ankle, pulling her so that she was upside down. He said something to his partner in Cantonese, one of the languages Jeanne didn't know. She could tell that she had just been insulted, though, by the way both of them started laughing as they started walking with her back up the stairs. "Yeah." She said to herself as she nodded her head, folding her arms over her chest. "Will's hide is mine for this…"

Granted, she had kind of walked into this one—literally—but when did she ever take responsibility for her own bull-headedness?

After what seemed like forever, being upside-down and all, they reached the main deck. Jeanne didn't have to be right-side-up to see that the it was swarmed with Sao Feng's pirates, all of which were holding the _Black Pearl_'s crew hostage. Even Tia Dalma, despite the fact that she could have probably hexed them all into submission, did nothing. Barbossa, Jack and all of those who had gone ashore with them were just climbing over the edge of the bow. Will—surprise, surprise—was nowhere to be found.

Barbossa grinned a little bit, stopping before the Pirate Lord of Singapore. "Sao Feng, you showing up here is truly a remarkable _coincidence_." He said, using the same words Sao Feng had used on him in Singapore.

Jack had been hiding behind Barbossa since arriving on the ship, nervously biting his nails. That failed, obviously, for Sao Feng saw him easily. "Jack Sparrow…" Jack meekly peeked over Barbossa's shoulder, moving out into full view. Sao Feng stepped over to him, a barely there grin on his face and his eyes narrowed. "You paid me great insult once."

A corner of Jack's mouth lifted in a playful grin. "That doesn't sound like me." In the next second, Sao Feng punched him square in the nose, knocking him backwards for a second. Jack tenderly lifted his hand to his nose, realigning it in the proper manner. He managed a smile through his pain. "Shall we call it square, then?"

Will finally stepped through the crowd of pirates, earning fierce glares from the crew of the _Pearl_, the worst of which was from his adoptive sister. His gaze immediately went to Elizabeth and Jeanne and he looked at Tai Huang's men. "Release them." He ordered, pointing to the two women, "They're not part of the bargain."

Barbossa's sharp gaze was upon him, his eyes narrowing. "And what bargain be that?" he demanded.

Sao Feng let out a silent chuckle. "You heard Captain Turner." He said to his men, causing Jack's eyes to go wide with shock. "Release them."

Elizabeth's shackles were unlatched and Jeanne was turned back onto her feet again. The brunette was immediately stalking her way towards Will, her stature showing that she was in a mood most unpleasant and that was never a good thing for anybody. "_Captain_ Turner?" Jack asked, looking between him and Sao Feng.

"Aye," Gibbs confirmed it with a grimace, "The perfidious rotter led a mutiny against us."

As soon as Jeanne got over there, she grabbed him by the shoulder and jerked him around so he was facing her. She smiled sweetly at him, batting her long eyelashes, and then quickly shot her fist up into his chin, sending him reeling backwards. "And he locked me in a _pantry_!" she shouted, cocking back to punch him across the face before two more of Sao Feng's men grabbed her arms and pulled her back. "What, pray tell, was your reasoning behind that?"

Will grunted, grabbing his jaw and trying to bring it back into alignment. He narrowed his eyes at Jeanne, who was glaring fiercely back at him. "I need the _Black Pearl_ to free my father. That's the only reason I came on this voyage." he confessed at last, bringing Jack's angry gaze over to him.

Elizabeth stormed over to Will and grabbed his shoulder, shoving him about to face her. "Why didn't you tell me you were planning this?" she demanded.

Will's eyes scrolled away from hers and he answered by flipping her own words around on her. "It was my burden to bear."

"He needs the _Pearl_…" Jack muttered before whirling around, repeating himself to the people standing around him. "_Captain Turner_ needs the _Pearl_." He cut a glance at Elizabeth. "And you felt guilty." His next gesture was made towards Barbossa. "And you and your Brethren Court." He looked around to address the entire crew. "Did no one come to save me just because they missed me?"

Elizabeth and Will exchanged a glance with each other, as did many other crew members, almost as if they were repeating Jack's question to themselves. However, nobody answered or made any sign that they missed him. Not even Gibbs or Jeanne; then again, the latter swore she would never admit that out loud again.

A moment later, Marty's hand shot into the air. Jack's face instantly brightened and he happily pointed out the sole supporter to everyone on deck. Slowly Pintel's hand arose, followed, of course, by Ragetti's. And then by Cotton's. Unexpectedly, Monkey Jack's paw went into the air as well. Jack turned to smile at Sao Feng, nodding his head towards that small group of people. "I'm standing over with them."

Sao Feng grabbed Jack firmly by the shoulder before he could even take three steps, roughly guiding him towards the rail. "I'm sorry, Jack." His tone made it very obvious that he wasn't. In fact, he almost seemed pleased. "But there's an old friend who wants to see you."

Jack's face fell significantly and he frowned. "I'm not certain I can survive any more visits from old friends…"

Sao Feng pulled him to a screeching halt, looking out at another ship closing in on the _Black Pearl_. "Here is your chance to find out."

Jack followed his gaze to find an approaching East India Trading Company ship and his face ticked slightly. "Oh bugger." he muttered to himself.

"Oh, don't worry, Jack." Sao Feng said through a chuckle, smirking as he squeezed Jack's shoulder harder, making him wince. "You will not be going alone." He slowly turned to look at Jeanne, making her eyes go wide. "Miss Monroe has also been invited to the party."

Jeanne's eyes swiftly set into a glare and her teeth clenched together angrily. "Over their dead bodies." she snarled, nodding to the pair of pirates holding her captive.

Jack raised an eyebrow at her, questioning what was going through her head. Sao Feng was glaring back at her. "I'm sure she means over _her_ dead body." Jack assured him.

A corner of Jeanne's mouth lifted into the smirk that was now plastered on wanted posters all across the seven seas. "Wrong as usual, Captain Sparrow."

With her arms being held so tightly, it was easy for her to lift her legs and she sent one flying straight up into one man's temple, forcing him to release her to stop the fresh blood from falling. As soon as her foot came down, it went up somewhere much less comforting. Every man aboard winced as they watched the other man fall over on the deck, his hands over his crotch.

As someone dove for her feet, Jeanne flipped herself into the air and brought both feet down on his head as she landed. Then, she took off, punching and kicking and flipping anyone who dared to cross her path. Sao Feng whipped out his sword and shouted an order in Cantonese that sent all of his men running after her. She cross-punched two pirates in the face and then grabbed a rope on the mainsail, getting a firm grasp on it and swinging to the upper deck. She looked down at them from the railing, the smirk returning with a spark of pure defiance in her eyes. "Catch me if you can!" she dared them.

As they watched Sao Feng's men chasing Jeanne across the deck, Jack, Will and everyone else who had participated in their last voyage was having a major case of deja vu.

* * *

A while later, Jack and Jeanne were being guided down a hallway by a pair of East India Company soldiers. Jeanne's hair was in total disarray and there was a small purple bruise on her left cheek. Jack shook his head, letting out an exasperated sigh. "Why do you insist on making a fuss over the tiniest of things?" he asked her in a whisper.

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, as if you wanted to be here!" she hissed back.

"It would have been better for both of us if you had just gone quietly."

"That's not my style and you know it."

"Next time, make your best attempt to make it your style."

"How about next time, _you_—"

"Quiet!" one of the soldiers snapped as he and his companion opened the glass double-doors of Beckett's office, shoving Jack and his protégée-turned-partner inside.

The doors were swiftly shut behind them, leaving them alone. With Cutler Beckett. "It's curious…" The Napoleon-esque official said, looking over his shoulder at them. "Your friends appear to be quite desperate." Jack began to walk around the office, lifting things and opening them up, as though he were searching for something. After fixing up her hair, Jeanne simply leaned back against the doors and folded her arms over her chest, wanting to stay as far away from Beckett as possible. "Perhaps they no longer believe a group of squabbling pirates is enough to take on the _Flying Dutchman_. And so despair leads to betrayal. But you and I are no strangers to betrayal… Are we, Jack?"

Jack glanced at his wrist, seeing the letter _P_ that had been burned into his skin. Beckett turned away from the window and looked to the doorway where Jeanne was standing. He arched an eyebrow. "Miss Monroe." She looked up at the sound of her name to see Beckett grinning at her. "Why so distant?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, but quickly softened them as she pushed her back off of the door. "My apologies, force of habit." A dry smile curled her lips as she walked over to stand beside Jack. "My father always taught me to steer clear of snakes."

Although, with her words, she could have easily been identified as the more venomous being.

Beckett's grin expanded a bit and he let out a low chuckle. "Ah, yes, of course. He taught you well…" He spoke without turning around and his grin turned into a cruel smirk. "How _is _your father, by the way?"

Jeanne whipped around, the smile quickly dropping from her face as she glared at him. The very fact that he would ask her that let her know that her father's death was no accident.

She took a step towards the man, ready to send him through the floor like a hammer would a nail, when Jack quietly cleared his throat. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him subtly shake his head so she stopped herself, playing with things around the room to distract herself from her rage. His time would come soon enough, she supposed.

Beckett turned around to face Jack with a blank face. "It isn't here, Jack."

"What?" Her gaze was drawn in Jack's direction as he looked up from what he was doing, his face clueless as he feigned innocence. "What isn't?" he asked.

"The heart of Davy Jones. It's safely aboard the _Dutchman_ and so unavailable for you to use as leverage to eliminate me." That comment was directed at a very surprised Jeanne—she'd not told anyone of her intentions. Beckett's next words were for Jack. "Or for you to satisfy your debt to the good captain."

One of Jeanne's hands moved to her hip and she daintily waved a fancy fan over face with the other. "Well, Beck, when you get down to it," she looked at him and raised an eyebrow, "Jack's debt has already been paid."

"By his death." She smirked when she saw the grimace of disdain on Beckett's face; he was clearly aggravated by the fact that Jack was still alive. "And yet here he is."

Jack, who had Beckett's cane in hand in front of a rather dramatic painting of the lord holding the same cane, turned and looked at Beckett with an impish grin. "Close your eyes and pretend it's all a bad dream." He said, turning towards the painting again. "That's how I get by."

_Sadly, that_ _is how he gets by…_ Jeanne mused silently.

Beckett tried his best to ignore Jack as he foolishly and mockingly imitated the painting before him. "And if Davy Jones were learn of your survival?" he prompted.

Jack broke his statuesque pose, his face dropping. Jeanne put on her sweetest smile, snapping the fan shut. "Davy Jones couldn't possibly find out." She glided over in front of Beckett, her lips still smiling, but her eyes threatening murder as she pointed the fan at him. "Not unless somebody tells him, of course."

Beckett's face remained hard as stone as he met her gaze. "I would advise you to hold your threats, Miss Monroe." His lips twitched subtly into a mischievous grin and he pushed the fan away from his face. "You would do well to keep in mind that Jack is not the only one here with a debt to pay."

That little reminder quieted her and her jaw set as Beckett brushed past her to his desk, where Jack was standing. He poured some liquor into two extremely small glasses. "Perhaps you'll be interested in an alternative arrangement…" He proposed picking up the glasses and holding one of them out to Jack. "One that requires absolutely nothing of you, but information."

Jack was looking down at the small soldier figurines and the pieces of eight that were lined up on the desk. He then eyed the liquor that was being offered to him, and then Beckett, and then the drink again. He slowly took it. "Regarding the Brethren Court, no doubt." Jack mused, taking Beckett's drink as well, much to his chagrin. "In exchange for fair compensation." Jack drank down one quickly. "Square my debt with Jones." He drank the other. "Guarantee my freedom."

Jeanne was walking around the desk, seeming rather intrigued by one figure that happened to look very much like Beckett. Glancing out of the corner of her eye, she put the fan down and took the figure and discreetly stuffed it into her pocket. Beckett was pouring himself a new drink, seeing as he had been robbed of the first. Jeanne took the bottle from his hands as he finished pouring from it. "And you can just give me this. As you know, I'm a woman of simplistic desires." She chirped, taking a swig. It wasn't rum, but it would give her the liquor fix she so desperately desired.

"Of course." Beckett looked up at the two pirates, raising his glass. "It's just good business."

Jeanne's lips separated from the bottle with a satisfied sigh. "So, tell us, Cutler, because we're curious…"

"… Were we in a divulgatory mood," Jack glanced at Beckett. "What then might we divulge?"

"Everything." came Beckett's quick response as he stepped closer to the two of them. "Where are they meeting? Who are the Pirate Lords? What is the purpose of the nine pieces of eight?"

Jeanne let out a low whistle, swishing the drink around in the bottle. "That's quite a bit of information, there." She commented with a nod. "So, of course, I must raise my price." She held up the bottle. "I keep this and, in addition to that, I am to be relieved of _my_ debt. Fair?"

Beckett's teeth ground. This was why he hated pirates. These two in particular. However, he hated being deprived of a winning edge even more. He smiled at Jeanne. "Of course."

"Excellent." Jeanne smiled back. "Now, where to begin, where to begin?"

"It's a novel concept to begin at the beginning." Beckett said blandly.

"So cut and dry…" She said, rolling her eyes. "The Brethren convenes at Shipwreck Cove."

"And just where is this Cove of yours?"

"That was not a part of the original set of inquiries." She responded sassily. "Next question."

He paused, desperately trying to resist the urge to throw her out the window. "Who are the nine Pirate Lords?"

Jack shrugged his shoulders, sending a sly grin over in Beckett's direction. "You've already met two of them." He said, gesturing to himself.

Beckett nodded, quickly figuring out that the other Pirate Lord of whom Jack spoke was Sao Feng. "And the rest?"

"Names are unknown, as the Court has not been called in years." Jack replied; an obvious lie, "but they come from all over. France. Spain. Africa. The Orient." He grinned, raising a new point. "And each one possesses their own piece of eight."

Again, Beckett nodded. Nine Pirate Lords. Nine pieces of eight. It seemed logical enough. But it did not address his third request. "But you did not answer the fundamental question. What is the purpose of those nine pieces of eight?"

"You've heard of the old legend, have you not?" Jeanne said as she set the fan down on the desk. "Of the first Court that had the goddess bound in her bones? Who freed the seas for mankind, even for the likes of you?"

Jack stared contemplatively at her, wondering how she came to know so much about all of this when this subject was never included in her lessons.

Beckett simply grinned, a quiet chuckle shaking him. "Ah…" He turned to look at Jack as he walked to his desk, his grin turning to a smirk. "Has the Brethren Court really stooped so low as to seek power through old sea tales and heathen legends?" He shook his head. "Such a pity."

"Says the one who possesses the heart of Davy Jones…"

His eyes flashed and his smile dropped as he turned to look at Jeanne, who was smiling impishly as she drank. He simply lowered himself into his chair. Jack sauntered over to Beckett at this time, his trademark grin on his face. "And there is more for you to gain still." he said, picking up the fan Jeanne was holding earlier. As he spoke again, the item flicked open and he fanned himself. "You can keep Barbossa, the belligerent homunculus and his friend with the wooden eye both. And Turner."

"Oh, especially him…" Jeanne interjected snappishly.

Jack stopped fanning and nodded in agreement. "The rest are to go with us aboard the _Pearl, _and we will lead you to Shipwreck Cove, where we will hand you the pirates and you will _not_ hand me to Jones." Beckett looked up from examining a piece of eight as Jack started fanning himself again. "Bloody fair deal, don't you think?"

"And what becomes of Miss Swann?"

Jeanne raised an eyebrow and Jack grinned. "What interest is she to you?" he asked.

Beckett's lips pulled into quick little grin of his own. "I believe _I_ am the one conducting this interrogation." Jeanne rolled her eyes at that. He rose to his feet and then made his way past the two pirates to the other side of the room. "And by the way, I've just recalled I have this wonderful compass which points to whatever I want." He lifted his hand to show off the item in question. "So for what do I need the two of you?"

Jack's eyes narrowed while Jeanne's eyebrow quirked, both of them turning to look at each other as a silent "didn't think of that" passed between them. Jack immediately went back to his scheming ways—he could not afford to have his stride broken by this minor bump in the road. "It points to what you want _most_," Jack clarified for him, "And that's not the Brethren Court, is it?"

"Then what is, Jack?"

"Me. And her." He replied with a light grin, gesturing between Jeanne and himself. Then the smile disappeared. "Dead."

Jeanne instantly had a vice-like grip on his upper arm. That did not stop him from putting one hand at her back and grabbing her free hand before he proceeded to dance with her around the cabin. Her eyes narrowed in confusion as he hummed a happy tune, spinning her every which way. "What are you doing?" she demanded in a harsh whisper.

He did not answer, but their impromptu dance number ended as quickly as it began, with Jack grinning once again. Beckett's brow twitched as the two stopped moving. The needle of the compass had been following them around the room as they danced, tracing his greatest want. Again, Jack was right. And again, it aggravated him. "Damn." he swore as he tossed the compass to Jack, who caught it and tossed Beckett his fan in return.

Jeanne released her grip on Jack, relief sweeping over her. _You bloody genius!_

"Although," Beckett's eyes suddenly lit up as he opened up the fan, waving it over himself. "If I kill the two of you, I can use the compass to find Shipwreck Cove—was it?—on my own." He whipped out a small pistol and pointed it at him. "Cut out the middle men, as it were."

And then her relief was gone. _You bloody idiot..._

Jeanne stepped forward and Beckett's pistol was pointed directly at her. Jack stepped behind her, intent on having her take the first bullet and triggering a roll of the eyes from her. She was far too young to die, so she took it upon herself to put her own honey-coated negotiation skills to use. "If you do us in," she mused as she walked around, Beckett's pistol following her and Jack still using her as a shield, "You'll get to Shipwreck Cove and find out that it's _very_ well-fortified and could hold out for decades if we want. Not to mention that every pirate in the entire world would blow you clear to Kingdom Come once you run out of ammunition." She shrugged, giggling as she stopped. "Some of us would enjoy it more than others."

Beckett twitched as they stopped their circling, his free hand reaching behind him. Jack peered over her shoulder at Beckett, a calculating smirk on his face. "And then you'd be wishing, 'Oh, if only there were someone I had not killed on the inside to ensure that the pirates would then come outside.'"

"And you can accomplish all this, can you?" Beckett asked.

Looking rather satisfied with himself, he finally stepped out from behind Jeanne. "You may kill me, but you may never insult me." He lifted his arms out to his sides as a gesture to himself. "Who am I?"

Beckett's face scrunched up a little bit and he shook his head in question. Jack frowned a little bit before he answered the silent question. "I'm Captain Jack Sparrow!"

A loud boom sounded off outside and the whole ship shook, obviously cannon fire. Beckett fell over onto a desk and Jeanne plopped to the floor. Jack was a naturally wobbly type of person, so he simply swayed, magically retaining his balance. He leaned over and gave Beckett's hand a swift shake. "Done!"

He sealed the deal on their…agreement, dashing to the doors and yanking them open. The two guards outside the door saw him about to make his escape and tried to come in and stop him. Jack simply slammed the doors into their faces and they dropped to the ground, Jack stepping over them and continuing on his merry way.

Jeanne shook off the dizziness of her fall and got up to follow Jack. "Done." She repeated as she made her way past Beckett.

Unbeknownst to her, Beckett's dizziness had also worn off. She looked up with surprise when she felt her wrist being grabbed, seeing none other than the evil little lord with an evil little smirk. He whipped his hand out from behind his back and then firmly squeezed Jeanne's sword-holding hand, and she let out a scream at the searing, burning sensation in her palm. She jerked her hand away, holding it tenderly. "And done." Beckett said as he lifted his hand to show her the object that caused her pain.

Her eyes went wide and then narrowed angrily. She balled up her good hand and gave Beckett a good blow across his jaw. As he reeled backwards, she made a hasty retreat from the room, holding her hand.

When she made it outside to the deck, she saw the _Empress_ retreating. It was a rather chaotic scene on deck as the crew tried to defend themselves from the _Pearl_'s fire. It was looking pretty chaotic over on the _Pearl_ as well, what with the crew reclaiming their ship and all. It was so chaotic, in fact, that she saw Mercer literally jump ship. She ran up to the upper deck when she caught sight of Jack skillfully tossing ropes over a cannon. By the looks of it, he was going to use the cannon to fling himself back onto the ship. Jeanne reached into her pocket and pulled out the tiny Beckett figurine she'd picked up earlier. Jack looked over at her and at the tiny little toy and a smirk lit his face. "I know just the place for that."

Beckett marched quickly from his cabin to the stairs, looking up at the two pirates to see Jack blowing on the botefeux to light it. Then he saw the little figure of him standing at the mouth of the cannon and his brows set down over his eyes as they went up to Jack. "You're mad!" he exclaimed.

Jack looked down at him. "Thank goodness for that, because if I wasn't," he grabbed Jeanne's waist and tugged her into him, "This would probably never work."

With that, he lit the fuse and the cannon fired, the force of the blast sending the two pirates into the air. With Jeanne screaming as they went, they flew over to the _Black Pearl_, the crew watching them with pure amazement. As they passed over the deck, Jack suddenly let Jeanne go, her scream raising an octave. Luckily for her, Pintel and Ragetti moved beneath her, arms opened as a basket in hopes of catching her. They were successful and she thumped into their arms safe and sound, if not somewhat shaken. The rest of the crew hastily followed after Jack as he continued to fly over. Barbossa started to follow after them, but looked up, doing a slight double-take at what he saw. Jack had landed in a very casual stance atop the captain's cabin, grinning. "And that was without a single drop of rum." he boasted.

Barbossa, frustrated at his casual take on life and just with Jack in general, stormed off, utterly bewildered. Jack climbed down and then strode over to Will, who was being held tightly by Pintel and Ragetti. Jack's grin was now replaced by a sneer. "Send this pestilent—"

"Lying—" Jeanne snapped as she appeared.

"Traitorous—"

"Pig-headed—"

"Cow-hearted—"

"Stupid!"

"Yeasty codpiece to the brig." Jack ordered. The two trouble-makers nodded and easily complied with his order, taking Will away. He let out a sigh through his nose and looked beside him expecting to see Jeanne there, but she had disappeared again without a word.

Gibbs walked up to Jack as he looked from side to side in confusion. The first mate raised an eyebrow. "Looking for somethin', Cap'n?" he inquired.

Jack nodded. "For her, as usual…"

"Miss Monroe?" They both looked down to see Marty standing there. He gestured his thumb towards the captain's cabin. "Saw 'er run in there. Looked like she was hurt."

Jack looked confused. Gibbs' face drained of color for a brief second; despite Jeanne's brutish nature, he still worried for her constantly, having been her former caretaker and all. He and Jack looked at each other for a brief moment and then quickly, but calmly, went to the captain's cabin.

Jeanne's hand shook, the searing pain gaining a pulse she could practically hear. She pulled the cork out of a flask with her teeth, voicing her murderous thoughts in foreign whispers.

Jack and Gibbs burst in at this time, watching her hand subtly quiver as she poured water over it slowly. She hissed in obvious pain, much to their shock; she constantly injured herself in the past, but never to the point of letting it show. "Jeanne." Jack called. Her head whipped around and she quickly made a rather painful fist to hide her wound as they walked to her. "What are you hiding there?"

"Nothing to concern yourselves with." She quickly replied, holding her hand to her chest.

Gibbs snorted, obviously not buying it. "Nice try, lass." He extended his hand to her, moving his fingers to beckon her to him. "Let's have a look."

At first, she just stared at him. Then he gave her that look he used to give her as a child when she returned home with "ill-gotten trinkets."

She reluctantly gave him her hand, but kept it closed. Jack rolled his eyes at this and pried open her fingers quickly, making her wince as she barely stifled a hiss. "Ow!"

Suddenly he and Gibbs' eyes went wide at what they saw. In the center of her quaking hand, there was a discolored circle, obviously contrasting her skin tone, outlining an also discolored letter _P_. They looked up at her in surprise and she shrugged, smiling weakly. "Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me…" she sang quietly.

**Ana: Bet you didn't see that coming. I even used a snippet from one of the deleted scenes I found ^.^ Sorry, Lady O. Beckett did hurt her.**

**Hanah: Ugh! I hate that little booger!**

**Ayu: Yeah, he's such a jerk! I totally can't wait for him to finally go down!**

**Ana: Now, now, all things in good time, Ayu-chan. Wait… Hanah did you call him a booger?**

**Hanah: Well, get the next chapter out so it can happen sooner! :O**

**Ayu: Like sooooooon! :O**

**Ana: Okay, okay, sheesh! I can tell when I'm being ignored. You guys are so needy... -.-**

**Ana/Ayu/Hanah: See you next time! :3**


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